Sharon Cittone

Founder & CEO, Edible Planet Ventures

Italy

Sharon Cittone, one of Forbes’ most powerful women shaping the future of food. A visionary entrepreneur, she also sits on the Advisory Board of the World Food Programme in Italy, is a Mentor for both Rockstart Agrifood and the FoodTech Accelerator, and is often invited to speak and write on the topic of Food Innovation. Sharon understood early on that her passion for healthy food was part of a much larger picture, and that challenges like climate change, food insecurity, waste, water conservation, and soil regeneration were intimately related and ripe for disruption. Using her extensive experience in communications and business, Sharon has been at the forefront of building and growing the global food and agtech ecosystem for the better part of a decade. Her work with start-ups, corporations, investors, policymakers, institutions, and youth landed her the coveted Forbes title. Cittone believes in connecting the dots, creating opportunities for others, and facilitating the collaboration that will lead to systemic change within the food system. She says, “The food system employs 40% of the global workforce, it touches many different industries from energy to logistics to packaging but its all connected and all I try to do is connect the dots and create opportunities for others.”