Plant-based: I want more!

Manuel Aleman

Global Plant-Based & Ingredient Category Lead, Nestlé Professional

Manuel Aleman is the Plant-Based and Coffee Ingredients Category Lead for Nestlé Professional, based at the Beverage Center in Orbe, Switzerland. His more than 15 years of Nestlé experience has been diverse, having worked in several markets in Latin America in commercial, operations, product development, marketing, and general management roles.

Manuel is passionate about coffee, food, plant-based, family, sports, travel, and respecting nature. Since a very young age, Manuel was surrounded by different cultures and lifestyle, moreover, he is convinced about the importance impacting positively people and respect for the other, together with his strong commitment with plant-based diets and sustainability.

Manuel is always looking forward to help leverage more healthy products for consumers, democratizing the plant-based beverage alternatives for customers and consumers, and caring for the planet.

Ana Aragon

Nutrition and Sustainability Manager, Nestlé Professional

Ana Aragon is the Nutrition and Sustainability Manager for Nestlé Professional, based in Nestle Headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland.  Her 25 years of Nestlé experience has been diverse, having held positions in nutrition, food technology, manufacturing, quality, sustainability, new product development and communication.  

Ana is passionate about food, family, healthy lifestyle, and respecting nature.  Since a very young age, Ana has been convinced about the key role nutrition plays in our health.  Her passion is relevant in working and inspiring people in the out of home (OOH) industry to provide safe, delicious and nutritious foods which have the potential to be also good for our health and wellbeing, while being produced in a way that it is respectful to our environment and communities.

In her current role with Nestlé Professional, she aspires to drive the Nestlé Professional Nutrition, Health, and Wellness (NHW) and Sustainability strategies to support the Nestlé vision and be applicable in the out of home industry.  Additionally, Ana leads the communication and education programs for employees and customers, supporting the journey to create credible partners in both nutrition and sustainability in the OOH industry.

Christos Sotiros

Master Barista and Category Executive, Nestlé Professional

Christos Sotiros is currently the Master Barista and Category Executive for Nestlé Professional, based in Switzerland.  Having a passion for customer service and flavor experience, he has worked in food service for 12 years, holding in a variety of food service positions in five-star hotels, independent cafes, bars, and restaurants in Greece and the USA.  

He has a Psychology degree from the American College of Greece and loves the mountains, especially in the winter as he is an avid snowboarder.  

Christos knew that coffee was his passion and would be part of his future as he attended his first coffee seminar when he was 18 and was amazed to learn about the coffee and roasting process.  He has been a finalist in Greek Barista Championships three times and placed 3rd in 2017.  In addition to being a Q-grader Arabica, he has been an AST trainer since 2017 on sensory skills, barista skills, and brewing modules.  

In 2016, he joined Nestlé in Athens, Greece, as a coffee expert supporting the sales and commercial teams to build their coffee knowledge.  Christos joined the global team last year and in his current role, he supports product and system development and is responsible for building coffee knowledge and capabilities globally.