‘Future food leaders,’ others get a taste of industry’s hottest trends at Fi Europe
Plant-based concepts dominated the annual Food ingredients Europe show at Messe Frankfurt. Held the last week of November, the four-day event dedicated several key components to plant-based solutions and innovations.
At a Glance
- Sensory science is key for retaining consumers in the plant-based market.
- Plant-based products should be indulgent, tasty, and have a nice texture, according to experts.
- Fermentation is a major trend in the plant-based sector, and formulators are aiming to use it to perfect innovations.
At this point, it’s second nature for us to tirelessly cover the latest developments in plant-based innovations. There’s just so much happening, including regulatory updates in labeling laws, functional beverages and using AI to improve the taste, texture and variety of alt-eggs, seafood and dairy.
Plant-based concepts also dominated the annual Food ingredients Europe (FiE) show at Messe Frankfurt in Germany. Held the last week of November, the four-day event dedicated several key components to plant-based solutions and innovations.
For example, Tastemakers Way, a central area connecting eventgoers to the exhibition hall, featured New Product Zone. Here, there were displays for novel ingredients and solutions such as Diveks’ Textured Insect Protein. The ingredient is developed by combining insect and pea proteins, resulting in a sustainable product that’s versatile and ideal for water binding capacity.
Also, Driessen Food Extrusion introduced a Crispy Vegetarian Cheeseburger Bite at the show. It promised “game-changing innovation” with an extruded breadcrumb coating specially designed for high-speed ovens. It was created to deliver that crispy, yet juicy aspect familiar with traditional burgers, elevating the experience of a non-meat burger.
California Natural Color Pure Yellow Safflower was also on display in the New Product Zone. Color is a major factor in plant-based analogues achieving the traditional look of animal protein products, but it’s also important to be sustainable. This ingredient aimed for solutions with dairy and alt-dairy products and is also clean and sugarless.
The ever-evolving technology and innovations in the plant-based sphere are what inspired Fi Europe’s organizers to develop a “Future Food Leaders” program. This year’s event marked the first time they’ve invited food science and food technology graduate and undergraduate students, who represented two local universities. It was an opportunity for them to learn about some of the hottest industry trends from a panel of experts from the likes of Cargill, Gelita and Drexel University. In addition to plant-based trends, the students learned about some of the latest innovations in fermentation and sustainability.
The plenary session and show were free for the students, who also had the chance to network with other professionals and tour the exhibition halls. They could ask questions, offer their opinions and seek job opportunities. They were also encouraged to explore the show on their own.
Sensory greatly impacts plant-based F&B
Elsewhere, exhibitors enthusiastically showcased their newest developments in plant-based innovation. At the top of the list was sensory science, one of the biggest buzzwords at the show. According to the experts, once the formulator understands it, the approach to plant-based products should evolve.
“The sensory experience is very key for retaining consumers, especially for new products and innovations,” explained Bastian Hörmann, global marketing director, sweet food, dairy, specialized nutrition, ADM. “It’s not only about the taste and how you perceive the taste, but also about the texture. If the sensory experience is not matching [the consumers’] expectations, they will never buy the product again.”
As an example, he continued, ADM’s R&D experts lean in to rich, recognizable global flavors to draw in consumers for plant-based innovations. At FiE, one of the offerings was a plant-based gyro topped with vegan tzatziki sauce. “So, the plant-based chunks you see on top are mimicking gyro meat—also in taste,” Hörmann said.