Changing Tastes

What Changing Tastes does

Changing Tastes is a privately held strategy, culinary, and sustainability consultancy founded in 2003 by Arlin Wasserman and headquartered in Philadelphia, PA. The firm advises enterprise clients across the food system — including the largest U.S. restaurant, foodservice, and hospitality operators (Compass Group, Aramark, Sodexo, Chick-fil-A), food manufacturers (General Mills), trade and environmental organizations (Mushroom Council, Almond Board, Marine Stewardship Council, Organic Trade Association, NACUFS), universities (Stanford, UMass Amherst), and government/international bodies (City of San Francisco, World Bank, UN FAO) — on sustainability strategy, menu and culinary innovation, sustainable sourcing, and strategic marketing.

The firm's core offerings consist of five professional services (Business Strategy, Culinary and Product Innovation, Sustainability Consulting, Speaking, and Strategic Marketing) layered on top of several proprietary intellectual-property platforms: the Plant-Forward culinary strategy (2009), the Menus of Change executive education initiative (co-developed with the Culinary Institute of America and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health), the More if By Sea seafood messaging platform (2022), the Cultivating Seafood research program, and the NACUFS sustainability benchmarking platform. Revenue is generated through retained advisory and project-based consulting engagements on a quote-based pricing model; the firm also receives grant funding from foundations (Walton Family, Kellogg, Packard, Open Philanthropy) to support specific research initiatives. No products, software, or technology platforms are sold as standalone offerings.

The firm operates as a boutique consultancy with a five-person named senior team, targeting enterprise clients through thought-leadership content, publications, speaking engagements, and direct field sales. The business has operated continuously for over two decades with no disclosed funding events, acquisitions, or inorganic expansion, consistent with an independently owned, founder-led professional services firm.

Name

Changing Tastes

Legal name

Changing Tastes

Website

https://changingtastes.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Changing Tastes is a Philadelphia-based boutique consultancy founded in 2003 that advises enterprise food companies, foodservice operators, trade associations, and government bodies on sustainability strategy, culinary innovation, and sustainable sourcing through proprietary platforms like Plant-Forward Dining and Menus of Change.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Sustainability Consulting

akta.pro primary industry

Food Safety Culture & Change Management Programs (AFALANAH)

Keywords

• Food sustainability consulting
• Culinary strategy services
• Sustainability advisory
• Menu innovation consulting
• Food sector strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Strategy and Sustainability Consulting: Changing Tastes provides strategy, culinary, and sustainability consulting services to enterprise clients in the food sector. They work with retail food brands, philanthropies, trade and environmental organizations, and large restaurant, foodservice, and hospitality companies on engagements focused on sustainability strategy, culinary innovation, and business transformation.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Changing Tastes is a strategy, culinary, and sustainability consultancy that advises enterprise clients in the food sector. The firm works with retail food brands, foodservice and hospitality companies, philanthropies, and trade and environmental organizations on sustainability strategy, culinary and product innovation, sustainable sourcing, and market transformation engagements.

Product overview

Changing Tastes is a strategy, culinary, and sustainability consultancy offering a portfolio of interconnected services and programs. The core offerings include Business Strategy, Culinary and Product Innovation, Sustainability Consulting, Speaking Services, and Strategic Marketing. The company has developed several signature programs: the Plant-Forward Dining Strategy (a culinary approach addressing climate change by shifting plant-animal proportions on menus), the More if By Sea platform (a messaging system to increase seafood consumption), and the Menus of Change Initiative (developed with CIA and Harvard for foodservice executives). Additional offerings include the Cultivating Seafood research program, NACUFS Sustainability Platform for universities, and specialized strategies for clients including the Almond Board, Mushroom Council, and Organic Trade Association. The company operates at the intersection of five key trends: sustainability, public health, information technology, demographics, and the changing role of the culinary professional.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Business Strategy Consulting
• Culinary and Product Innovation
• Sustainability Consulting
• Speaking Services
• Strategic Marketing
• Plant-Forward Dining Strategy
• More if By Sea
• Menus of Change Initiative
• Cultivating Seafood Research
• NACUFS Sustainability Platform
• Mushroom Council Blended Burger Strategy
• Almond Board Strategy
• Organic Trade Association Marketing Strategy
• Thank You Africa Program

Quantifiable outcome

• More than $2 billion in additional revenue created for client companies
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Culinary Institute of AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChanging Tastes designed and created the Menus of Change initiative for the Culinary Institute of America and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, an unprecedented executive education program integrating sustainability, nutrition, and culinary strategy. Arlin Wasserman served as inaugural chair of the Sustainable Business Leadership Council from 2012-2018.
• Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with the Culinary Institute of America and Changing Tastes to create the Menus of Change initiative. The collaboration integrates sustainability, nutrition, and culinary strategy for foodservice industry executives.
• Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChanging Tastes conducted the first study of how restaurant companies can influence global and domestic seafood supply chains, then led creation of a precompetitive roundtable with major restaurant and hospitality companies to forge a common agenda for improving industry practices.
• DatassentialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducted two years of joint research with Datassential for the Plant Forward 10 Years study to understand changes in diner preferences over the past decade.
• Stanford UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArlin Wasserman collaborated with Dr. Christopher Gardner and others at Stanford University to publish a groundbreaking article on modest reductions in meat consumption, published as the lead article in Nutrition Reviews.
• Wilderness MarketsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Wilderness Markets to assess the opportunity to reintroduce West Coast Groundfish to market, conducting a 90-day market trial with institutional and retail foodservice operators in California.
• Conservation InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorked alongside Wilderness Markets and Conservation International to identify strategies to increase market recognition for fresh yellowfin tuna caught by Grenada's small fishermen under the Ocean Partnership Project of the World Bank and UN FAO.
• SodexominorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArlin Wasserman previously served as VP of Sustainability at Sodexo and created the Better Tomorrow program. Sodexo has since been a client of Changing Tastes through various engagements.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Food Tank: Food-system think tank and media organization focused on sustainable food futures. Comparable thought-leadership and policy-oriented food sustainability positioning, though more media-driven than consultancy.
• ReFED: Food waste reduction nonprofit producing data, benchmarks, and capital-focused reports. Adjacent to Changing Tastes' Better Tomorrow food waste training and food-system advisory work.

Broad incumbents

• Ceres: Sustainability nonprofit working with investors, companies, and policymakers on food and agriculture transformation. Comparable enterprise-engagement model in food sustainability, but broader mandate and significantly larger scale.
• Deloitte (Sustainability & Climate Practice): Big Four firm with an established food and sustainability advisory practice, increasingly competing for ESG strategy and reporting mandates at the same enterprise food and foodservice clients as Changing Tastes.
• McKinsey & Company (Sustainability Practice): Global management consultancy with a sizable sustainability and consumer/food practice serving many of the same enterprise CPG and foodservice clients as Changing Tastes, but as part of a broader portfolio offering.
• Environmental Defense Fund (EDF): Major environmental nonprofit with substantial food and agriculture programs that partner with retailers, foodservice, and CPG companies on sustainability. Overlaps with Changing Tastes' food sustainability and supply-chain advisory work but at much greater scale.
• Bain & Company (Sustainability Practice): Global management consultancy with food/CPG and sustainability capabilities that compete for the same enterprise transformation mandates Changing Tastes serves. Comparable strategic advisory, but at far greater scale and breadth.

Direct peers

• Forum for the Future: International sustainability nonprofit running food-system transformation programs (e.g., Protein 2.0). Operates in the same food sustainability strategy and program-design space as Changing Tastes, often with shared philanthropic funders.
• Pure Strategies: Boutique sustainability and food/CPG strategy consultancy advising brands on sustainable sourcing, packaging, and supply chains. Closest direct competitor to Changing Tastes in food-industry sustainability advisory.
• Quantis: Sustainability strategy and environmental footprinting consultancy serving major food and consumer goods companies. Comparable offering and client overlap with Changing Tastes in food sustainability strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Changing Tastes