FE is celebrating women in manufacturing in one of the best ways we can—by giving them a platform to speak about their journey to success and their hardships. Since beginning my career as an editor, I have hosted many interviews celebrating women in high-powered industries and hearing their unbelievable stories. I always leave those interviews feeling inspired and their advice stays with me long after editing is completed.

As a woman that has recently started a different kind of journey in the food industry, having the opportunity to listen and learn from someone like Christie Lagally, whose education and passion has led her almost to the moon (not quite, but you’ll see). Diverse opinions and experiences aid business growth by allowing leadership teams to hear innovative ideas across a spectrum of human experiences. Lagally is a person whose career exemplifies what it means to be inclusive. She is motivated by an intense compassion for our planet, human experience and animal welfare. Lagally’s end-goal for Rebellyous Foods is to change the manufacturing landscape of plant-based foods to allow for equitable and safe manufacturing for high-quality, low cost alternative meat. Currently, Rebellyous is working towards creating automated manufacturing equipment that’s able to be retrofitted into any facility and lower the overall cost of plant-based meat production globally.

Christie Lagally is the founder and CEO of Rebellyous Foods, a food production technology company working to make plant-based meat price-competitive with traditional meat. Lagally holds Bachelor's degrees in Organizational Psychology and Mechanical Engineering and a Master’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering. She spent much of her career in the aerospace industry working on testing, designing, and manufacturing commercial airplanes at Boeing and holds multiple patents. Before founding Rebellyous, Lagally served as a Senior Scientist for the Good Food Institute uncovering technical barriers in the development of plant-based and cultured meat.

Rebellyous brings together Lagally’s commitment to reduce animal suffering and fight the climate crisis, with her extensive technological background. Lagally is an active member of the National Women’s Political Caucus of Washington and a co-founder of the Humane Voters of Washington (a political action committee) and serves as a Washington State Volunteer Leader for the Humane Society of the United States.