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Designing healthier foods for people and the planet
The past year for the food industry has seen some new challenges, as well as incredible progress and exciting breakthroughs.
From history-making approvals for cell-cultivated meat and the rise of weight-loss drug Ozempic, to a continued period of investor cautiousness and a more health-conscious consumer, the sector continues to grow and adapt with pace.
Technology has changed the game for many industries, and the food-tech industry is no different. There are a variety of different areas in which food technology can help to improve the industry, such as tackling food and nutritional insecurity, improving health through nutritional enhancement and leveraging medicinal foods.
Future Food-Tech, as the go-to meeting place for the food-tech industry, provides a forum for leaders to collaborate, share ideas and network, encouraging innovation and development to create a healthier food system for people and the planet, whilst navigating the obstacles.
ADM, Danone, the FDA, General Mills and Whole Foods are among the international line-up of over 150 speakers who will take the stage at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis this March.
Program highlights
Alongside the hard-hitting main stage agenda, delegates will join interactive breakout sessions to dig deeper into specific topics, enjoy tastings and cooking demonstrations of innovative new products, and meet today’s most exciting entrepreneurs in the Start-Up Arena.
Opening panel
The action kicks off on Thursday, March 21 after a networking breakfast, with the first panel - Taking A Holistic Approach to Tackling Nutritional Insecurity.
The first question shaping this discussion concerns collaborative strategies employed by food industry players to combat nutritional insecurity, spanning from serving diverse populations in schools and hospitals to meeting the dietary needs of everyday consumers.
Addressing the ramifications of COVID-19, climate change and market volatility, the second question looks to the impact of these conditions on food security around the globe, and the programs and initiatives put in place to combat these ripple effects.
Following on from this, the panel will delve into how supply chains can be strengthened to ensure that access to food isn’t disrupted when needed the most, against the backdrop of geographic-political instability and conflict.
And finally, looking towards government and federal bodies, the panel will consider what impetus should be placed on these figures to shape policy and encourage the procurement of healthy and sustainable foods, increasing access to good food.
Speakers and highlights
The panel features distinguished speakers including Leticia Gonçalves, President at Precision Fermentation and ADM Ventures within ADM; Isabelle Esser, Chief Research, Innovation, Quality, and Food Safety Officer at Danone; and Abigail Buckwalter, CEO overseeing operations in the US for Nestle Health Science.
In addition to this, more highlight sessions across the packed two days include:
- Creating nutrition-centric foods through fortification and bioactives – with Tufts University, Brightseed and Ayana Bio
- Overcoming the obstacles in advancing cell-based from vision to reality – with Upside Foods, Demolish Foods, Meatable and Convington and Burling
- Developing a roadmap to take alternative proteins to commercialization – with McWin Capital Partners, CRB Group, Scaleup Bio and Believer Meats
- Investor projections and predictions for the food-tech industry in 2024 and beyond – with DSM-Firmenich Venturing, Manna Tree Partners, KBW Ventures and Boardwalk Collective
Start-Up Arena
Future Food-Tech is a key discovery platform to meet exciting early-stage food-tech companies seeking new connections, investment and collaborations among the investment and global food-tech community. Start-ups are given pride of place with a whole dedicated floor and side program of live pitching sessions, exhibition, investor match-making and mentoring sessions taking place in the Start-Up Arena.
Confirmed to join already are Alora, Circe Bioscience and Filtricine, among many more.
Networking opportunities
Networking opportunities include breakfast briefings, lunches, drinks reception, lounges and a dedicated 1-1 meeting hub for scheduled meetings.
The online networking platform and app open two weeks before the summit for delegates to connect in advance and plan out their days with valuable meetings.
This is a powerful platform offering high return on time invested as senior strategic leaders connect across the food-tech value chain, forging partnerships and accelerating the innovation needed to design healthier foods for people and the planet.
Senior representation has been confirmed already from innovation leaders across the food-tech ecosystem from technology to investment, food brands and retail including:
Dates March 21-22, 2024
Venue Marriott Marquis San Francisco
Find out more information about Future Food-Tech’s full program, start-ups, and accommodation.
Future Food-Tech summits take place every year in San Francisco, London, Singapore (under the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit) and in 2024 the Alternative Proteins edition will move from New York to Chicago. The summits are part of Rethink Events’ global series of market-leading agri-food summits, created by experts in agri-food technology, investment and climate-tech. Rethink Events is a William Reed company.