Jen Mayer
Director of Crop Stewardship
Jen has lived all over the world, including over 15 years spent in different countries in Africa. She considers the Bay Area of the US as her place of origin and Harare, Zimbabwe, as her hometown. Jen studied English Literature as an undergraduate student at UC Riverside, but after spending time as an ag volunteer in CAR and Togo with the Peace Corps, she set herself on a path to a career in agriculture, ultimately leading her to obtain her MS in International Agriculture Development from UC Davis in 2003. After many years working on agriculture and markets in the international development sphere, Jen joined a local research trust, Bio Innovation Zimbabwe, and put that experience into practice, focusing on the commercialization of underutilized crops and plants for the Zimbabwe market. This eventually led Jen to start a small company called Hutano Foods that produced snacks and breakfast cereals for the Zim market, using those crops and plants as ingredients.
Q&A
What’s most inspiring about your specific position at The Land Institute?
After the pandemic sent me back to the US, I started looking around to see who was working on this in the US market and found The Land Institute’s work on Kernza, Baki bean, and other perennial grains incredibly exciting. I’m thrilled to be a part of this organization’s important work to bring perennial grains to consumers.
What drew you to work at The Land Institute?
The people and its mission! I can’t believe how lucky I am to be part of this important work.
What perennial grain crop do you look forward to eating the most, and how would you prepare it?
I’m kind of a psycho for pretzels and would love to try one made with Kernza!
What’s your motto/favorite quote?
You’ve got to go there to know there.
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