MBA Fellow builds the business case for sustainability as competitive advantage at Nestlé Health Science

During the summer of 2026, Renata Lara Arizpe (MBA '27) interned as an NYU Stern MBA Sustainability Fellow at Nestlé Health Sciences. Read on to learn more about her time there:

Name: Renata Lara Arizpe

Grad Year: 2027

Specialization: Sustainability and Global Business

This summer, I was a Sustainability Fellow at Nestlé Health Science (currently transitioning into Nestlé Nutrition and Health). It was really exciting to be involved in a pocket of Nestlé that is leading many of today's key food trends, such as high-protein products and shifting industry dynamics around GLP-1 usage. Throughout my internship, my primary focus was to build a strong business case for commercial executives to show how embedding sustainability can serve as a true competitive advantage. This required deep research into industry success stories where sustainability is a core operating model, alongside an in-depth look into customer priorities across circularity, regenerative agriculture, health access, and climate trends. I also had a vast array of conversations with people working across the entire value chain, from supply chain and packaging to marketing and commercialization, to understand how to take Nestlé's extensive existing initiatives and translate them effectively for different stakeholders. Speaking with stakeholders across these different verticals confirmed my desire to work at a firm with enough scale and reach to be a key policy shaper in the food industry.

My primary goal coming to Stern for my MBA was to transition from Financial Services into the Food and Beverage space, and spending the summer at the world's largest food company confirmed this is the right choice for me. As I continue taking sustainability courses at Stern, this experience gives me a clear head start on understanding how making an impact from within corporate strategy can improve the durability and health of global food systems. Since my project was focused on the commercial side of sustainability, it really helped clarify the exact type of role I want to target for my future career. The biggest takeaway I will bring with me is that by focusing on what consumers care about and building resilient, healthy value chains, we can future-proof the food industry to keep innovating for the long run.