Food Matters Live Podcast

The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed food consumers online in huge numbers, with shoppers moving to delivery services to minimise their trips to supermarkets. Additionally the crisis saw many businesses create their own direct-to-consumer marketplaces, cutting out the middle man altogether. Waitrose polled 2,000 people across the UK and found that 77% now do at least some of their grocery shopping online, compared with 61% the year before. Is your brands e-commerce and direct-to-consumer strategy tapping into this growing marketplace? In today's podcast, host Stefan Gates is joined by Dean McElwee, Integrated Commercial Lead E-Commerce The Kellogg Company and Francis Nicholas, Group Digital Director, Nomad Foods, to hear their experience of e-commerce and direct-to-consumer, and to learn their recommendations for businesses across food and retail. About our panel Francis Nicholas, Group Digital Director, Nomad Foods Francis first got involved in the space more than a decade ago and was responsible for launching many of P&G’s brands into various Pure Plays (in particular Amazon) across multiple European markets. He also worked to drive the Online businesses with multiple Bricks & Clicks retailers. At Nomad Foods, Francis is responsible for driving the Online sales of Family Favourites such as iglo, Findus and Birdseye. Whilst this space has challenges, the consumer is ultimately the boss. Therefore it’s crucial for Brands and Retailers to understand how they can deliver against increasing consumer expectations whilst at the same time addressing the resulting business challenges – something Francis focusses on. Dean McElwee, Integrated Commercial Lead E-Commerce, The Kellogg Company Dean is the Integrated Commercial Lead, eCommerce for Europe at The Kellogg Company. Dean is a commercially focused E-Commerce leader with a broad commercial background with over 18 years’ experience in Retail Consulting and Sales Leadership for blue-chip multinational organisations. He has enjoyed a career spanning both emerging and developed markets across multiple channels. He has broad experience across both emerging and developed markets across multiple channels.

In this Table Talk Podcast episode we explore why a one size fits all approach to diets doesn't work, and what the latest scientific research tells us about our nutrition, the impact of our gut microbiome, and what this means for a more personalised approach to diet and nutrition.To explain the significance of the research and its findings we're joined by Dr. Sarah Berry, Senior Lecturer from Kings College London and one of the leads on the PREDICT 2 study, to explain what this latest research means for our understanding of our gut microbiome, and the impact it can have on our overall health and well being, and how it debunks the idea of a one size fits all diet."And actually what our research shows is how little of it is predetermined by our genes. That's actually really exciting because it shows therefore that our response to food is modifiable, that we do, actually, as individuals have control"Dr. Sarah Berry will be presenting a nutrition spotlight session at Food Matters live in March. To find out all about this fascinating session, and how to register, click here. About Dr. Sarah BerryDr Sarah Berry’s research interests relate to the influence of dietary components on cardiometabolic disease risk; with particular focus on postprandial metabolism and vascular dysfunction. Since commencing her research career at King’s College London in 2000, she has been the academic leader for more than 30 human nutrition studies in cardio-metabolic health. Sarah’s ongoing research involves human and mechanistic studies to elucidate how markers of cardiometabolic health can be modulated following acute and chronic intakes of different fatty acids and interesterified fats, as well as studies to investigate the influence of cell wall integrity on macronutrient and micronutrient release from different plant-based foods. Sarah is also the lead nutritional scientist on the world’s largest ongoing programme of postprandial metabolic studies (the PREDICT studies), assessing the genetic, metabolic, metagenomic, and meal-dependent effects on postprandial metabolic responses.About the PREDICT studiesThe landmark study published in Nature Medicine and presented at the American Society of Nutrition shows dietary inflammation varies dramatically among healthy adults, pointing to the need for personalisation in eating. The PREDICT Studies reveal multiple factors ranging from gut microbes, blood sugar, fat and insulin levels to exercise and sleep impact an individual’s ability to achieve optimal metabolic health. Even identical twins respond differently to the same food; identical twins share only a third of their gut microbes. This ongoing study has shown that dietary inflammation varies up to ten fold in healthy adults. Results point to the need for personalised eating plans to sustainably combat weight and health challenges, setting the stage for artificial intelligence (AI) to help people manage their health by choosing foods that work optimally with their biology. ZOE, the sponsor of the study, is launching a test kit using this science to help people achieve their healthiest weight, by profiling their unique gut microbes and inflammation after meals and using AI to create a personalised eating plan. To find out more about PREDICT and ZOE, click here

The meat alternative market has plenty of burgers, sausages, and steaks to meet the demands of an increasingly flexitarian marketplace. However, seafood alternatives have been scarce compared to the options available for beef, pork and chicken. Why is this the case? Well, seafood presents some unique experiential challenges, primarily with mouth feel and texture, that are part of what we associate with eating fish. In this podcast we look at these challenges, and the opportunities, that seafood alternative producers are confronting to create new and tasty fish alternatives.“Seafood is one of those proteins that is everywhere. There’s an endless amount of applications that you can bring into the mix”CHRIS KERR Joining host Stefan Gates are a panel of global experts in the field, including Tom Johannsson, Co Founder & CEO, Hooked Seafood AB (Sweden), Jen Lamy, Sustainable Seafood Initiative Manager, The Good Food Institute (US) and Chris Kerr, Founding Partner, CIO, Unovis Partners; CIO New Crop Capital; Co-Founder, Gathered Foods (US). Join them to find out the scope of the challenges they are overcoming, and to find out how big the market could potentially be for fish and seafood alternatives, and the impact their success could have on the environment.About our panelTom Johannsson, Co Founder & CEO, Hooked Seafood AB Tom is the Co-Founder & CEO of Hooked Seafood AB. He has an engineering background but with experience from The Boston Consulting Group and Procter & Gamble. With an increasing concern about the climate, food system and a desire to make a meaningful change he started Hooked Seafood with his Co-founders Emil and Peter in 2019. Hooked is now one of the most ambitious and promising startups to unlock the plant-based seafood market in Europe with a €500k seed round just closed to fund their launch in 2021.Jen Lamy, Sustainable Seafood Initiative Manager, The Good Food Institute Jen manages GFI’s cross-programmatic Sustainable Seafood Initiative to ensure that it proceeds strategically and with the input and involvement of key stakeholders. She works with members of GFI’s Science & Technology, Corporate Engagement, and Policy teams to accelerate the development and commercialisation of alternative seafood through foundational research, open-access resources, and strategic engagement with external partners. Jen holds a master’s in environmental management from Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and a bachelor’s in economics and environmental studies from Wellesley College.Chris Kerr, Founding Partner, CIO, Unovis Partners; CIO New Crop Capital; Co-Founder, Gathered Foods With almost thirty years of leadership experience with start-ups and venture capital investing, Chris Kerr has spent the last decade focused on impact investing in the plant-based foods sector. Chris is a co-founder of Gathered Foods and its Good Catch plant-based seafood brand and has worked with and helped launch many game changing companies in the plant-based sector, including Beyond Meat, Daiya, Alpha Foods, NUMU and many others. He is the Chief Investment Officer for Unovis Partners, which is the asset manager for New Crop Capital, one of the world’s most active investors in the plant-based foods and cellular ag technology sectors. Also, Chris is director of Trellis New Endeavors, Wicked Healthy, Pitcairn Financial Group, and Anark Corporation.

Are you tapping into the the experience economy? Consumers experience brands on a variety of levels, and not all of it is conscious. A great deal of your 'brand effect' will be non-conscious. Specific sensory attributes deployed across your pack and product will be generating deeper, more meaningful levels of engagement. Could creating meaningful consumer experiences help your brand?Host Stefan Gates is joined by a panel of experts including Andy Wardlaw, Chief Innovations Officer, MMR Research, Mike Faers, Founder & Chairman, Cubo Innovation, and Paul Thomas, Director, The Forge to find out how a decision to go beyond 'liking' on your next development project could be the start of your quest to fully realise your brand's sensory power."We are now entering an era where people's demand for experiences is filtering down to every day it's no longer going to be confined to travel and music concerts. I think there is going to be, first of all, a pent up demand for experiences everywhere and a reevaluation of the role of experiences over stuff." - Andy Wardlaw, Chief Innovations Officer, MMR Research About our panelAndy Wardlaw, Chief Innovations Officer, MMR ResearchAndrew’s career in food and drink began with selling fish paste to local stores and wholesalers for the Shippam’s brand in the south of England. That was in 1992. Since then he has gone on to develop insight and ideas for Old El Paso, Haagen-Dazs and Nature Valley – all at General Mills, as well as stints at functional dairy brand Benecol and every little person’s favourite Ella’s Kitchen.Now he heads up ideas at the MMR Group, which helps brands develop products that are not just liked, but beautifully aligned across all moments of truth – across brand, pack and product - to create more powerful user experiences. MMR partners with over 2/3 of the world’s leading food and drink manufacturers and has had a very busy 2020 as companies invest in a new consumer landscape.He lives in Great Missenden, world famous for the writer Roald Dahl, which might explain his love to all things chocolate…Mike Faers, Founder & Chairman, Cubo Innovation,CEO and Founder and all round Innovations guru, Mike has a huge amount of experience from the kitchens of Le Gavroche to heading up Product for McDonald’s Europe and then globally. Growing tired of working with agencies who could talk the talk but failed to deliver, mike left his role at McDonalds to start FIS in 2010. Having run and established manufacturing plants, innovation academics and working extensively with many of the UK’s major retailers and brands, Mike offers strategic planning, troubleshooting and innovation best practise to Cubo’s clients, using decades of expertise to ensure that businesses operate efficiently and innovate brilliantly.Paul Thomas, Director, The ForgePaul is a Director at the Forge, a strategic insight consultancy. Prior to that, Paul has spent the majority of his career in Head of Insight & Innovation roles at food & drink clients – Asahi, Diageo and Ferrero. Paul specialises in branding, comms and innovation – and believes deeply that brands must bring experience to consumers, especially as his own personal favourite experience, the pubs, are closed at the moment.About MMRMMR Research Worldwide is part of the MMR Group; privately owned and proudly independent. This allows us the flexibility and freedom to adopt a strategy focused around innovation and employee empowerment. For our clients, that means outstanding service and access to specialist sensory, fieldwork and online expertise.

Danielle Nierenberg, President of Food Tank, has spent spent two years visiting more than 35 countries, including sub-saharan Africa and Asia, investigating environmentally sustainable ways of alleviating hunger and poverty. She’s also explored extensively the impact of COVID-19 in the US and how the domestic food policy could, and should, change as a result. In this podcast, her unique insight gives us a picture of the global challenges affecting our food system, and the ways in which we can address them. From sustainable farming, to governmental policy changes that can help our environment, to changes we each can make individually that will make a significant contribution to a more sustainable food system, Danielle provides a comprehensive look at how the industry can create a brighter, healthier food future.About Food Tank Food Tank is for the 7 billion people who have to eat every day. We will offer solutions and environmentally sustainable ways of alleviating hunger, obesity, and poverty by creating a network of connections and information for all of us to consume and share. Food Tank is for farmers and producers, policy makers and government leaders, researchers and scientists, academics and journalists, and the funding and donor communities to collaborate on providing sustainable solutions for our most pressing environmental and social problems. Food Tank highlights hope and success in agriculture. We feature innovative ideas that are already working on the ground, in cities, in kitchens, in fields and in laboratories. These innovations need more attention, more research, and ultimately more funding to be replicated and scaled-up. And that is where we need you. We all need to work together to find solutions that nourish ourselves and protect the planet.About Danielle NierenbergDanielle Nierenberg, President, Food Tank In 2013, Danielle Nierenberg co-founded Food Tank with Bernard Pollack, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on building a global community for safe, healthy, nourished eaters. Food Tank is a global convener, research organization, and non-biased creator of original research impacting the food system. Danielle also conducts extensive on-the-ground research, traveling to more than 70 countries across sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America. She has met with thousands of farmers and farmers’ groups, scientists and researchers, policymakers and government leaders, students and academics, as well as journalists, documenting what’s working to help alleviate hunger and poverty while protecting the environment. Her knowledge of global agriculture issues has been cited widely in more than 20,000 major print and broadcast outlets worldwide, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the International Herald Tribune, The Washington Post, BBC, MSNBC, Fox News, CNN, CBS This Morning, The Guardian (UK), The Telegraph (UK), Le Monde (France), the Mail and Guardian (South Africa), the East African (Kenya), TIME magazine, the Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France Presse, Voice of America, the Times of India, the Sydney Morning Herald, and hundreds more. Danielle is the recipient of the 2020 Julia Child Award. She has an M.S. in Agriculture, Food, and Environment from the Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and spent two years volunteering for the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic.

Our world is changing in ways we never imagined. The way we live, work, socialise and entertain ourselves has evolved. During the pandemic, we have collectively experienced life-changing events and circumstances that have caused us to recalibrate and adapt. Whether it’s communicating virtually, working remotely, staying indoors or washing our hands, signs of this new way of life are abundant. Givaudan have conducted in-depth consumer research to find out how their preferences in food and beverages have evolved in recent times – and what this means for our customers. Will these consumer food and drink preferences change for the long-term following the impact of the pandemic? “44% of our Europe, Africa and Middle East consumers have changed their food and beverage consumption since March 2020” This episode of the Table Talk Podcast aims to answer that question, in partnership with Givaudan, the global leader in the creation of flavours and fragrances. A recent Givaudan consumer survey of over 5,000 consumers across Europe, Africa and the Middle East identified four major trends in food and beverage consumption. Safe, secure and sustainable Gourmet experiences at home Balancing health with treating yourself Value for money Find out how consumer attitudes will influence innovation in food and beverages with our panel featuring Basak Oker, Head of Consumer & Sensory Insights Europe, Danielle Van Hees, Category Manager for snacks Europe, Marta Kusnierz, Category Manager for Sweet Goods and Dairy Europe, Nely Vlasblom, Product Manager for Beverages Europe, and Virginie Philippe, Category Manager for Culinary Europe. To find out more about Givaudan’s research, click here About our panelBasak Oker, Head of Consumer Sensory Insights, Europe Basak has 15 years of experience in marketing, innovation, digital business and consumer insight generation. She joined Givaudan in 2015 as the Category Manager for Beverages EAME; she was named Head of Consumer & Sensory Insights EAME in June 2020. Prior to joining Givaudan, she held various marketing and innovation roles in FMCG companies within personal care and toy industries. Basak holds an MBA from Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and a BA in Business Administration from Koc University in Istanbul.Danielle van Hees, Category Manager Snacks Europe Danielle joined Givaudan in 2006 working in various marketing roles within the different business units. Danielle is now part of the Regional Innovation team for Snacks. Prior to joining Givaudan, Danielle worked at a number of IT companies before joining the FMCG market. Danielle studied Commercial Economics at the University of Utrecht. When not at work she likes spending time with her family playing LEGO with her kids, she also enjoys running, cycling holidays and reading. She is based in Naarden in the Netherlands.Marta Kusnierz, Category Manager Sweet Goods and Dairy Europe Marta has more than 10 years of experience in sales and marketing in the food and home appliance industry. Marta joined Givaudan in June 2020 and manages the Sweet Goods and Dairy category in Europe. This broad category consists of segments like chocolate, bakery, gum and candies, as well as dairy and plant-based dairy. Marta has a background in sales, marketing and category management and holds a degree in political science and communication.Nely Vlasblom, Product Manager Europe Nely has 15 years of experience in sales, marketing and innovation. In 2017, she joined Givaudan as a Regional Product Manager for the Beverages, Dairy and Sweet Goods. In this role, she ensures market needs are translated into Givaudan’s innovation programmes. Prior to this role, she worked in food and biotechnology for B2B companies. Nely holds an MSc degree from Wageningen University in The Netherland in which she chose a commercial and technical specialisation. Part of the education program was fulfilled at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (USA) and the University of Khon Kaen in Thailand. Virginie Philippe, Category Manager Culinary Virginie joined Givaudan in 2011 as part of the Sweet Goods and Dairy team where her primary focus was on Sweet Goods. In 2018 she added Dairy categories to her expertise for the EAME region. In 2020, she took over responsibility for Culinary applications including ready meals, sauces, soups and more. Virginie holds two Masters degrees, one in International Marketing and another in Marketing applied to Fragrances & Flavours. Prior to joining Givaudan, she worked for other F&F companies including Takasago. Virginie is passionate about food and enjoys tasting new dishes, travelling and spending time with her family.

For people around the world to be truly healthy, they need access to a balanced diet containing all of the essential primary, secondary and micro nutrients. Where does our food get its nutrients from? The soil. How can we build a sustainable future, feed a growing population, and protect our soil nutrients and arable land at the same time? The key is promoting farming practices that are profitable for farmers, environmentally sound, and good for communities, and the correct use of fertilisers has a key role to play. In this podcast, in partnership with Anglo American’s Crop Nutrients, we look at the challenges farmers face, and how balanced crop nutrition and sustainable crop production offers the perfect solution.About our panelRobert Meakin, Crop Science Director, Anglo American’s Crop Nutrients Robert Meakin manages the research and development, crop science function and the POLY4 global agronomy programme. POLY4 is the trademark name of Anglo American Crop Nutrients polyhalite product. Polyhalite is a naturally occurring, evaporite mineral that will be mined at the Woodsmith Mine in North Yorkshire, England. Sustainability and low environmental impact is a central theme which runs through the entire Woodsmith Project, one of the largest engineering projects in Europe. It has been specifically designed to blend into the landscape, with all key infrastructure hidden beneath the surface. As a whole company, Anglo American have targeted a 30% reduction in operational GHG emissions by 2030 and have a long-term plan to become carbon neutral across the operations by 2040. Multi-nutrient and low chloride POLY4 fertiliser contains four of the six essential macro nutrients – potassium, sulphur, magnesium and calcium – required for crop growth and a range of micro nutrients including iron, boron and zinc. Using this natural material means that it not only improves yield and quality of crops through provision of a balanced nutrition but, due to an environmentally considerate production process, POLY4 can also be used by farmers who choose to adopt organic farming practices.Santiago Bernal, Innovation Director, Cefetra Iberica Santiago is the innovation director at Cefetra – a Spanish farmer services company that is part of BayWa, the Bavarian farm services giant. With their platform Sembralia.com they serve farmers and ranchers across all Spanish geographies and crop types providing fertilising solutions and digital farming services, promoting the use of technology to optimise farmer income, reduce the environmental impact of agriculture and bridge the rural gap.Marshall Taylor, farmer, Volis Farm, Somerset Marshall, together with his eldest daughter Caroline, runs a dairy herd farm near Taunton in Somerset. They now run around 280 cross-bred milk cows to produce a profit from milk off grass that is then also used in the production of local cheeses. At Marshall’s Volis Farm, profit is optimised by focusing on soil health. A soil system in nutrient balance, which respects the environment, maintains ecosystems and returns carbon to the soil, is Marshall’s target for optimum performance.