Isha is a keen advocate for the responsible use of science in food security, initially building a strong scientifical skillset at university. Isha obtained a BSc in Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology at the University of Alberta in 2009 and later obtained a Masters in Biotechnology at the University of Toronto in 2013. This strong foundation of scientifical education led Isha to the world of cellular agriculture, acting as a research assistant at the University of Alberta where she researched into the improvement of low-quality meats.
Isha soon became highly passionate about cellular agriculture, and she founded multiple businesses to introduce it more prominently into the food market. She also realised that there was a lack of funding in the field, and so she began to raise awareness of animal products that are made without animals. She published a review in the Innovative Food Science and Emerging Technologies journal titled Possibilities for an in-vitro meat production system, which increased the awareness of the field.
In 2013 Isha became the Executive Director of New Harvest, one of many companies building the credibility of cellular agriculture. Here she worked to fund and conduct various research projects that help to reinvent the way that food is made, making animal products without physically harming animals in the process. Isha co-founded her first cellular agriculture company in 2014, co-founding Perfect Day. Perfect Day utilised cellular agriculture to make milk without cows by taking food-grade yeast and incorporating DNA sequences to create milk. She later co-founded Clara Foods, another cellular agriculture company that made eggs without chickens.
Before joining the world of agriculture, Isha worked as a policy associate at GlaxoSmithKline. Here she worked to assess countless policy issues and she was able to develop her scientific and analytical skillset. Isha is also a Director’s Fellow of MIT Media Lab and was a Foundation Fellow of the Shuttleworth Foundation.
As a speaker, Isha has previously delivered TED talks, with her speech Re-thinking Meat having been watched by thousands. After coming to terms with the environmental impact of meat production, Isha is pioneering food creation through cellular engineering, revolutionising the food market. An advocate for sustainability, Isha encourages others to take a step back and look at the way in which their food is produced and the impact that it has on the world around us.
