Platform for African – European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development

Saturday, June 18, 2022

Building an Innovation Ecosystem to Transform Food Systems

15 June 2022
Building an Innovation Ecosystem to Transform Food Systems. By World Bank

The Data-Driven and Digital Agriculture Team has launched a new, monthly FoodTech Innovation Webinar Series.
  • FoodTech is the intersection of agriculture, food, and technology along the value-chain from harvest, storage, processing to distribution and retail. 
  • FoodTech has promising potential to facilitate the transition of agri-food systems to meet both consumers' demands and sustainable development goals. A diverse range of speakers and discussants from industry, academia, and policy will analyze the various challenges and opportunities in the ecosystem. 
The second webinar in the series provides a deep dive into the rapid transformation of the “hidden middle” of food systems particularly in LMICs led by SMEs (Michigan State University). Additionally, there was a discussion on alternative and plant-based proteins across the FoodTech and nutrition sector while evaluating and assessing the potential to scale innovations along the value-chain and from one region to another. 

Demand for human food and animal feed has steadily increased, particularly in developing countries. Alternative protein and plant-based meat alternatives are projected to gain a significant share in global diets and have potential to reduce carbon emission and resource use. 

The webinar provided an opportunity to highlight alternative protein and food processing companies (Veggie Victory and Blendhub) and discuss challenges and opportunities in developing alternative protein-based products and business development in emerging markets.

Speakers:
  • Thomas Reardon, Professor, Michigan State University
    Michigan State University and the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics is addressing societal policy questions and solving practical problems for producers, consumers, and the environment in Michigan and around the world.
  • Hakeem Jimo, Co-Founder of Veggie Victory
    Veggie Victory is Nigeria’s first plant-based food tech company bringing people a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle through plant-based meats and meals. Since 2013, Veggie Victory has been surprising Lagosians with veganized Nigerian culinary delicacies and expanding from a restaurant to retail level.
  • Henrik Stamm Kristensen, Founder of Blendhub
    Blendhub is a platform for food production services. It helps food companies, brands, and raw material providers in the development and launching of their products. Originating from Spain, they now have operations in India, Colombia and Mexico.
Discussant: Yvonne Pinto, Digital Agriculture and Innovation Specialist, World Bank

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