This October, Food Matters Live held its first virtual conference. The conference focused on identifying opportunities in a changing consumer-driven market. It brought together international exhibitors and experts from the food, drink and nutrition industry with a view to explore the latest innovative ingredients and nutraceutical solutions. 

The five content streams provided insightful knowledge on the hot topics of the moment and below are our key takeaways from each:

  1. Where innovative ingredients meet the future of retail trends – as the connection between nutrition, health and wellbeing gains momentum, immunity, gut health and plant-based alternatives are the key trends to watch
  2. Nutrition and health science – COVID-19 is changing the specialized nutrition sector and companies are focusing on optimizing functional ingredients for digestive wellness and immune health
  3. Nutrition in the community – good nutrition can help promote wellbeing and reduce health inequalities, if the correct policies are in place 
  4. The future of sustainable diets – the solution can only be found if we all work together: starting with policy makers, continuing with the private sector and ending with consumers 
  5. The future of packaging design and creativity – most successful brands are transparent and win customers’ trust by actively involving them in the discussion

The conference ended with a live broadcast of the Food Matters Live Awards 2020 ceremony, where the winners across seven categories ranging from food tech innovation to gut health product of the year were announced. Among the winners was Truly Turmeric with Black Pepper by Naledo, which was awarded New Food Product of the Year. Notably, Naledo is a fellow Certified B Corporation and the only B Corp Winner among this year’s award recipients.

New Food Product of the Year Winner: Truly Turmeric with Black Pepper by Naledo, a BCorp and social enterprise founded by mother-daughter duo Umeeda and Nareena Switlo. Their mission is to provide delicious products that are healthy, sourced and produced sustainably, and empower the communities they work with. The product has been praised by judges for its taste, usability, innovation, as well as its social and environmental impact.

And for anyone who missed the conference, Food Matters Live 2020 just released an on-demand education pass that gives uninterrupted access to all the content, seminars and discussions. More information can be found here.