2024 Agenda: Transforming the Food System for Climate and Human Health

• As the need to improve access to affordable, nutritious food intensifies, how are companies working to create food that improves climate and human health without a premium?
• From micronutrient deficiencies to childhood obesity, where is the need for more sustainable nutrition? How are companies working to tackle these problems?
• In what ways can innovation be harnessed to improve nutritional density and health impacts, whilst ensuring production is sustainable?
• What role do governments and NGOs play in building the necessary guidelines, recommendations and industry standards around food and ingredients for organisations to deliver on nutritional profiles and sustainability goals?
• With consumers at the centre of all things food, how does the industry ensure that consumers have enough education about the connection between diet and health?

Session Chair:
Richard Zaltzman, CEO, EIT FOOD

Speakers:
Victoria Spadaro Grant, President, Innovation and Commercial Development, TATE & LYLE
Ana Piekarz, Global Head of ESG Nutrition, THE KRAFT HEINZ COMPANY
Marianne O’Shea, Vice President of Global Health and Nutrition Sciences, PEPSICO
Greg Garrett, Executive Director, ACCESS TO NUTRITION INITIATIVE

• From cocoa and coffee to sugar and oils, what solutions are disrupting the market to provide alternatives to critical raw ingredients?
• What impact can alternatives have for CPGs and retailers looking to stabilise supply chains, circumvent increases in inflation and reduce Scope 3 emissions?
• How are innovators working to provide cost-effective technologies and processes, that ensure the product solves corporates’ challenges whilst maintaining taste and experience?
• What roadblocks face the commercialisation of alternative raw materials? What strategies and business models can be put into practice to limit these challenges?

Speakers:
Clément Tischer, Head of Food-Tech, REWE GROUP
Adam Maxwell, CEO, VOYAGE FOODS

• What are the latest innovations emerging in the chocolate space?
• From upcycling ingredients to cell-cultivation, how are innovators utilising technologies that provide alternative methods of chocolate production, or alternative ingredients that deliver a like-for-like chocolate product?
• With rising cocoa prices, how do disruptive solutions help to ensure the sustainability of supply, as well as providing price predictability in the face of market volatility and inflation?
• How does the current environment lend to CPGs looking to switch from current cocoa supply, and what can innovators do to capitalise on this?

• What positive changes have been implemented so far within the food industry to reach sustainability goals, and what challenges remain?
• What innovations and technologies, like waste valorisation, can be leveraged to reduce emissions, decarbonise and reduce environmental impacts?
• Which areas are food companies prioritising as they work to address and reduce scope 3 emissions?
• What policy change is necessary to outlaw meaningless environmental claims and encourage accountability and transparency across the sector? What processes and technologies are in place to facilitate this?

Session Chair:
Christina Senn-Jakobsen, CEO, SWISS FOOD & NUTRITION VALLEY

Speakers:
Nadia Attar-Bashi, Vice President R&D and Sustainability, Europe, Central Eurasia & Turkey, MARS WRIGLEY
Gaetan Kerloc’h, Head of Impact, FIVE SEASONS VENTURES

• From continuous fermentation to cheaper feedstocks, how are companies in the fermentation space utilising innovation to make the economics add up?
• Which bioprocessing techniques, whether up or downstream, allow for the best yield and cost reductions?
• How are AI, ML and sensors being applied to fermentation production to maximise efficiency?
• What promising partnerships have emerged across the value chain that aid scale and encourage commercialisation?

Speaker:
Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro, Director of the Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein and the Microbial Food Hub, IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON 

• How can innovators leverage the knowledge and support of scale-up partners to shorten the runway to commercialisation, whether regarding equipment, facility construction or financing?
• With an increase of disruptive technologies enabling scale, how do these innovations help vertically integrated solutions to scale effectively from lab, to pilot, to a scale-up facility?
• How can enabling technologies with a strong tech platform work with, and build successful partnerships with B2B players? Does the B2B business model garner more success?
• What role do partnerships play in reaching better unit economics that add up for investors, corporate partners and the consumer alike?

Session Chair:
Floor Buitelaar, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, BRIGHT GREEN PARTNERS

• How are AI and machine learning being implemented to accelerate R&D and product innovation in the food sector? What range of solutions have already emerged?
• What impact can AI have on new ingredient discovery? What strides have been made to optimise flavour, taste and texture?
• With the growing focus on nutrition, how can AI provide greater insights to define the value and impact of ingredients and nutrients on health?
• For scaling companies, how are predictive analytics allowing for a reduction in R&D time, and what impact is this having on the costs and risks of production?
• As AI continues to evolve, what does the scope of future applications look like for the food sector?

Session Chair:
Thomas van den Boezem, Principal, PEAKBRIDGE

Speakers:
Alexandre Bastos, Head of Front-End Innovation, GIVAUDAN

Delegates break into small groups to discuss the most critical issues facing the food-tech industry. Each table is hosted by an industry expert, and delegates can choose the topic most relevant to their business.

• As interest in the gut-brain axis grows, what nutrients and bioactives are understood to affect cognition and mental health through their impact on the gut?
• How can innovations like biosensors be leveraged to gain data-driven insights around the gut-brain connection to a level of precision not yet reached?
• From clinical trials to funding, what challenges make it difficult to discern the microbiome’s influence on specific conditions, from anxiety and depression through to Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s?
• What is necessary in terms of policy and labelling to ensure that product claims are not outlandish and have a clear message around necessary intake to enjoy the health benefits?

Speaker:
Thomas Gurry, CEO & Co-Founder, MYOTA HEALTH

Hear from the European Innovation Council on Accelerator Challenges that are designed to support breakthrough technologies and innovations with the potential to scale up internationally.

With opportunities worth over €1.2 billion, the team are on the lookout for game-changing innovations developed by start-ups or SMEs that can have a major impact on EU objectives – from AI through to food produced through fermentation.

Speaker:
Ivan Stefanic, EIC Programme Manager, EUROPEAN INNOVATION COUNCIL AND SMES EXECUTIVE AGENCY (EISMEA)

• As food investments start to pick up and innovators focus on milestones and budgeting, is the food sector moving out of the investor winter?
• Which innovations and technologies have got investors feeling optimistic? What breakthroughs have they got their eye on?
• Will the sector see an uptick in IPOs after a period of quiet? What strategies will be needed to see more exits in this new economic climate?
• What measures are investors employing in order to ensure continued success and supporting scale for current and future portfolio companies?

Speakers:
Christina Schwab, Investment Director, DSM-FIRMENICH VENTURING
Bodil Sidén, General Partner, KOST CAPITAL
Laurent Vermer, Partner, Next Food Capital, KHARIS CAPITAL

• From molecular farming to biomass fermentation, where will technologies take the food industry from 2025 to 2035 and beyond?
• Over the next decade, what breakthroughs will the sector see that elevate taste in parallel with functionality?
• Which ingredients and methods of production will have overcome the barriers of scale? How much market share will novel foods and ingredients have by 2035?
• As securing the health of the planet is essential, what new innovations will be needed to reach sustainability commitments and make sure that the growing population is fed sustainably?
• What innovations and strategies will be needed to reach better unit economics and ensure affordable prices for consumers across the globe?

Speakers:
Bruno Dasque, Vice President, R&I Europe, DANONE
Todd Rands, CEO, ELO LIFE SYSTEMS 

• With pre-approval tastings getting the green light in the Netherlands and exciting initiatives happening in the UK, what are the latest breakthroughs for cultivated products in Europe?
• How are innovators speeding up the cultivation process and what enabling technologies can play a role in achieving this?
• How are companies approaching the issues of scaling-up and improving unit economics?
• What strategies and partnerships are emerging in Europe and beyond?
• How are governments prioritising cellular agriculture and what more is needed until we see cultured products more readily available?

Session Chair:
Alice Ravenscroft, Head of Policy, THE GOOD FOOD INSTITUTE EUROPE

Speakers:
Robert E. Jones, Vice President of Global Public Affairs, MOSA MEAT
Owen Ensor, CEO, MEATLY
Peter Quigley, Deputy Director of Regulatory Services & Food Policy, FOOD STANDARDS AGENCY

• With regulatory approvals for alternative proteins & novel foods in some geographies, but new legislation around nomenclature and restriction on sales elsewhere, what impact does this have on companies working to scale and commercialise in this space?
• What nomenclature has been shown to resonate best with consumers, whether for plant-based, cell-cultivated or fermentation? What are the challenges around nomenclature and how does geography influence this?
• How can the industry work together to challenge legislation and steer public perception to overcome these obstacles? What examples of this have been seen across the sector so far?
• How can the industry, regulatory and legislative bodies work more closely together to improve understanding around food-tech? Where are we seeing governments working more openly and collaboratively with food innovation?

Speakers:
Marc Coloma, CEO, HEURA FOODS
Ben Price, Business Development Manager, RSSL

• As demand for Ozempic & WeGovy continues to rise, what are the effects on the food sector? Does the sector anticipate that Europe will also experience the same hype around GLP-1 drugs?
• How are companies working to understand how to support the needs of their consumers using GLP-1 solutions, both during usage and afterward? How are product ranges and reformulation evolving to address these needs?
• What range of solutions are being developed to provide natural alternatives to GLP-1 drugs, and help consumers manage appetite management and glucose control?

Speakers:
Rania Abou Samra, Global Head of Product & Technology Development & Head of R&D, US, NESTLÉ HEALTH SCIENCE
Sonia Huppert, Global Innovation Leader, IFF

• As the sector focuses on premiumisation, with controversy over ingredients and nutritional impact, what innovations are disrupting the early life nutrition space?
• How can technologies like precision fermentation provide the missing link when it comes to the sensory experience, taste and functionality of infant nutrition solutions?
• Which companies are working to create a like-for-like human milk?
• From regulation, consumer acceptance and cost, what are the biggest obstacles to navigate the route to commercialisation?

• In what ways are companies providing solutions for people 50+? What solutions and brands already exist?
• As a growing market, what innovations can fill the gap and capitalize on the opportunities of the silver economy?
• From mobility and muscular repair to cognition and longevity, what are the need states that ought to be addressed?
• What innovative products are focused on prevention and better maintenance health for the 50+ age category?
• What are the differences between the needs of men and women for this bracket that ought to be taken into account?

This year we’ll be joined by breakthrough innovators and entrepreneurs in pitching sessions sharing their solutions tackling challenges from climate, alt-protein solutions to gut health!

After you’ve cast your votes for the winner of each pitching session, the overall winner for Future Food-Tech’s 2024 Start-Up Arena will be announced on the main stage with a chance to make their pitch and collect their award!

• Taste and flavour remain paramount, but how does the increased focus on health and nutrition impact people’s purchasing?
• As prices continue to rise, how is affordability influencing consumer choices?
• How do consumers feel about biotechnology for food in Europe and what can be done to encourage acceptance?
• What are the next generations wanting from the food they buy? How does climate factor in the choices of younger vs older generations? Will there be an increased demand for carbon tracking?

• What impact has the quiet investment period had on creating a more open environment for strategic and corporate players to support innovators?
• How can larger organisations help innovators navigate regulatory processes? What are the internal challenges for corporates working with companies without regulatory approval?
• Whilst science and innovation are crucial, how can strategic partnerships encourage downstream thinking, to ensure disruptive technological solutions are anchored to tangible consumer needs?
• How can multi-company partnerships help to transform how collaboration takes place in the food sector? How should new partnerships work to ensure that each parties real needs are met?

Session Chair:
Kim Anders Odhner, Managing Partner, Europe & Asia, UNOVIS ASSET MANAGEMENT

Speakers:
Judith Camarcat, Head of Big Bets & Impact, CARREFOUR
Richie Gray, Vice President and Global Head of SnackFutures, MONDELĒZ INTERNATIONAL
Marta Laorden, VC Director, MCWIN CAPITAL PARTNERS