The organizers of Anuga have announced the main themes of the upcoming iFood Conference 2019, which will take place during the trade show. The fair is scheduled to open its doors on October 5.
The fifth Innovation Food Conference – iFood 2019 will be hosted by the DIL German Institute of Food Technology. The event will take place on October 7.
The aim of the conference is to jointly work out approaches for the development of efficient value chains, which provide sustainable and attractive products.
Digitalization, new production concepts, changing consumer needs and current concepts of sustainability are resulting in a great variety of opportunities, especially for everyday consumer goods. Whether production, distribution or marketing – the willingness to recognize changes quickly and to adapt to new developments is necessary for entrepreneurial success.
Here are some of the key issues that will be touched upon during the event.
Sustainability – New Concepts for Food
Sustainability in its ecological, social and economic dimensions has become the major driver of innovations and is a strong selling point for food products. Issues such as ethics, animal welfare, resource efficiency, food authenticity, and consumers’ health shape the public debate about food production and consumption.
Sustainability has become an instrument which is used by different market players and interest groups to position and interpret issues in a new way. At the iFood Conference 2019, the topic of sustainability is approached pragmatically. The speakers will approach this broad topic with different perspectives. Thereby, they will provide expert-insights from economic, scientific and marketing viewpoints.
Digitalism – Blockchain and AI
The progressing digitalization has some major implications for the food chain. On the other hand, it opens new (online) channels of distribution. One the other hand, big data solutions provide companies with a strong mean of analyzing markets and to improve own processes in different ways. What opportunities does digitalization offer the food industry in terms of transparency and traceability? Where do we find AI now and what role will it play in the future? During the iFood Conference 2019, experts will talk about the status quo of digitalization and provide you with the latest insights into economic impacts and opportunities, as well as the exciting topics of AI and blockchain.
Innovations – Increase of Knowledge Transfer
Nutritional habits are subjects in constant change. How can the producers of food products make the right decisions to design their product portfolio and change their manufacturing processes in confusion of short-lived trends? Can more flexible production platforms such as 3D printing or extrusion improve competitiveness? Is decentralization of production the key to satisfying the consumer’s desire for greater individualization of products? Well-known players and experts will comment on this at the iFood Conference 2019.
New Food Trends in the Global Food System
The changing global food markets place new challenges towards all stakeholders along the food value chain. New food trends are leading to future growth in the demand for alternatives to animal protein sources. In addition to the high demands in terms of product quality, sustainability, process control, and logistics, great importance is also placed on what is reaching the consumer. What trends are expected in the global food system? And what measures are appropriate to ensure affordable production and distribution costs and, at the same time, provide the end consumer with high-quality new food. All these questions will be answered by our speakers at the iFood Conference 2019.
