DuPont partners with food innovation nonprofit

Innovation is a cornerstone of the global food and beverage industry; while 2020 has put a wrench in many organisations, companies are accelerating their investment in partnerships and finding new ways to explore and develop future strategies.

DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences announced a partnership between its Food & Beverage platform and the Institute for the Future (IFTF), a U.S. nonprofit dedicated to using unique methodologies and toolsets to develop futures forecasts. According to DuPont, the collaboration will drive food and beverage industry innovation that anticipates shifts in market needs, allowing the company to co-create innovation with customers and build on long-term forecasts (10 years and beyond).

“Short-term product development strategies are common in the food industry, where consumer demands constantly change. It’s not unusual that new food and beverage launches are a knee-jerk reaction to a trend that appears out of the blue,” said Birgitte Borch, global marketing leader, Food & Beverage, DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences.

“Along with IFTF, we will be looking into trend development beyond consumer behaviors and developing strategic foresight with scenarios that impact the food industry in the short term and long term, to help them get ahead of the markets. This will help our customers navigate in uncertain times and understand the impact on the value chain with a holistic view of the challenges and opportunities. Our work with IFTF will allow us to be prepared with the right solutions, ingredient technology and application concepts, and enable our customers to be more proactive in their product development strategies.”

IFTF’s research anticipates several disruptive megatrends over the next decade in the food industry, which will support DuPont in identifying paths forward. All of IFTF’s forecasts are based on a systematic review of social, technological, economic, environmental and political factors.

“Through our partnership with IFTF, we can better understand how these trends will evolve in the future,” Borch said. “This is key to building and maintaining success in fast-moving markets and will increasingly be part of the conversations we have with food manufacturers.”