Without harming our planet, our current food system could feed up to 3,5 billion people. With 8 billion mouths to feed as of today, we can’t continue our current way of producing, distributing, and consuming our food. There is a big need to transform the global food system, getting us ready to sustainably feed 10 billion people.
We see the big trends in food become reality. These innovators set the first steps to redesign the food system forever. And there are plenty of opportunities left to impact the global food transformation. So, what are you waiting for? Let’s get you started and accelerate the future of the food. We’ve collected food for thought for you to create new value in the food system, contributing to the change that is so needed.
It is hard to get out-of-the-box when you are in it for years. But we have to. Food producers, processors and distributors need to be innovative to stay relevant in the future food system. Alright. Creative hat on. Let’s get you into ideation mode.
One of the ways to get your ideas out-of-the-box is to take innovations and trends and apply it to your own business. To do this you can ask yourself challenging What-if questions. This gives you the opportunity to see what you should or could fundamentally change in your business model. To spice up your imagination we have created fake covers of magazines in 2035 to imagine what the future of food could look like.
So let us look at current food and technology trends and see what those could mean for your business. What if...
Most people are creatures of habit. We buy the same products and pick the same meals over and over. Making meat alternatives the new normal means exponential growth for those products, resulting in exponential impact too.
Make such change, and you directly contribute to the ‘new’ system. Plant-based, in comparison to animal-based meat, is more sustainable. It uses less land, needs less water and leads to less greenhouse gas emissions. And bonus, it is mostly considered healthier too. This change fundamentally changes your value proposition, so do not forget the consumers. How crucial is it for your customer that it is actual meat? How can you still fulfill your customer needs with alternatives? Your customers need to transform and accept the alternatives.
And if you do not work with meat? Look at sustainable alternatives for your own products and see how you can normalize those.
Recently, vegan burgers already became cheaper than meat in The Netherlands, a possible driver to stimulate change in buying behavior and a step towards normalizing plant-based meat.
Other than plant-based, we see other alternatives being developed or hitting the market too, such as lab-grown meat and insect protein. Both are less harmful for the environment. The Aspire Food Group is making the steps into the world of advanced insect farming, where they are changing food and nutrition insecurity.
Dutch municipality Haarlem is the first city in the world to ban meat and fossil advertising in public space