About Valia

More than “Just Biscuits” !

If anyone were to say to my 18 year old self, that over the next 30 or so years, I would

• fall in love with food technology and become a Fellow of the Institute of Food Science and Technology in the UK
• move from Athens to London
• marry and live happily ever after
• have a wonderful daughter and a naughty dog
• get a job in the biggest biscuit company in the UK, doing something I love
• grow some of the most iconic brands like McVitie’s, Jacob’s, Jaffa Cakes, Penguin
• have millions of people in the UK and around the world eat and enjoy products I have created
• lead a fabulous team of over 100 dedicated and fantastically talented scientists
• sit on three executive boards
• become passionate about the power of good, sustainable and ethically sourced food to nourish our body, our soul and the planet
• make so many friends
• travel to exotic far away places
• make even more friends
• bring happiness through volunteering
• become a lecturer and enjoy every minute of it, I would have said “I’ll have what you’re having!”

In this blog I share what I have learnt and what has inspired me and still does, with those starting their career or their studies. I hope to inspire them to enter the magical world of food.

It may be “just biscuits” to some, but to me it has been and is a wonderful life. Besides, can you imagine a world without them ?