Brand Vice President / Age 35
Fork Farms
Lalu Beré’s development of the Fork Farms brand redesign — including a new vision, mission and values — helped lead to a 147% increase in revenue in the past year, part of the company’s rapid 400% growth from 2020 to 2023.
“This has meant thousands more people across the U.S. and eight international countries have the technology to grow fresh food for their communities,” Beré says. “Being a part of building our team and enabling greater health and nutrition in the places where we work is a gift that brings me a great sense of pride every day.”
Beré — the daughter of an Irish-Catholic mother from Rochester, Minnesota, and an Ethiopian father who fled war and famine in Addis Ababa in the 1970s — is a strong supporter of organizations working to address racial inequality and discrimination. Locally, she’s involved with the Boys & Girls Club of the Fox Valley’s STAR program, which works to create equitable educational opportunities for Black scholars in the Fox Cities. Beré also is a volunteer for United Way Fox Cities, where she once served as resource development officer.
As Fork Farms grows and works to keep pace with national competitors in the vertical farming space, Beré has recognized talent attraction as a key challenge for Northeast Wisconsin. “I’m very supportive of initiatives to create an even more rich, rewarding, and inclusive community across Northeast Wisconsin to attract talent to this community.”
