content tagged as Sustainability

With changes to the environment on the rise and the rise in global population, food producers are forced to answer the question “How can we pursue future growth and survival with limited resources?” Agricultural production has been estimated to contribute 17 to 32% of global greenhouse emissions. When taken holistically, the food chain compromises food/ingredient production, processing, packaging, transportation, retail, consumption, and waste generation. Food suppliers have caught onto the fact that in order to thrive as a business it is vitally important for the business to implement sustainable practices to create a competitive advantage and have social impact, which in turn leads to increased market share. In this panel discussion we will be looking at three perspectives from the value chain: food ingredients, food processing, and food packaging. The speakers will discuss the initiatives that they have undertaken to reach their sustainability goals, the reasoning behind those initiatives, the challenges being faced in this area in their sector, and, more importantly from the business standpoint, how sustainability creates value for their businesses long term. In addition, we will be looking at the role of NGOs in developing sustainable practices across all three areas of the value chain and their role as drivers of growth through PR and work done with government bodies.

CRISPR, an acronym for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats” is a gene-editing technology that may facilitate the reduction of diseases in humans, plants, and other organisms. A recent review of this technology by the National Academy of Sciences noted that this technology represents possibilities in preventing the transmission of genetically inheritable diseases. This technology may also represent opportunities to ensure and improve the global food supply as the agricultural and scientific communities strive to increase the quality of that food supply to be the needs of a growing population while being attentive to environmental challenges associated with less water, energy, and land. While some argue that the technology may produce genetic errors, thereby additional research is required, others suggest that as we expand our knowledge in bacterial immune systems, the production of non-browning mushrooms, mildew resistant wheat, virtual elimination of respiratory and reproductive diseases among livestock, better tasting fruits and vegetables, and drought-resistant crops may be possible. According to a recent statement by the USDA, the agency does not plan to regulate this technology any differently than traditional hybridization or breeding techniques. This session will outline the possibilities associated with CRISPR technologies, and discuss potential unintended consequences.

Already over two billion people worldwide are affected by some form of food insecurity such as malnutrition or poverty. Furthermore, the world population is projected to grow to 9 billion by 2050, while urbanization is set to increase by 78%. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018” (FAO) states that the number of hungry people is on the rise already today. While a great deal of attention is paid to improve the quality, production and delivery of food, an oft neglected aspect is preventing food loss as it makes its way from the producer to the consumer. Nearly one third of all food produced for human consumption is lost before it makes its way to the consumer. Global food supply chain losses are substantial, and amidst talk of having to increase food production significantly to meet growing demands, there appears to be a gap to identify how much food is lost and wasted and how we can prevent these food losses. Reducing this loss will not only have a direct impact on hunger by increasing the available supply of food, it will have several indirect economic and environmental benefits that can be observed throughout the food value chain. 

Another aspect of achieving zero hunger, is solving “hidden hunger” or malnutrition. It is often the case that even when adequate food reaches a population, the proper nutrition is lacking. Finding the means to deliver proper and often specialized nutrients to large target populations is a vital technology in the fight against global hunger. This requires transformational thinking and innovation some examples of which will be introduced in this session.

Lastly, this session also aims at providing clarity on how interested food technologists could participate either remotely or locally in the various programs managed by UN food agencies. This is a first collective step between these organizations and IFT to find avenues to identify food technology capabilities and resources that can contribute to the strengthening of capacities of local communities that these organizations assist.

There do not exist clear venues for food technology professionals to contribute their expertise and collaborate with multilateral organizations in projects either remotely or locally. For example, WFP feeds 80 million people annually with only a staff of 20 food technologists contributing to the development, distribution and management of the safety and quality of food value chains in some of the planet’s most remote and insecure regions. We hope to bring awareness of the demand for food technologists in these vital sectors so we would have the talent necessary to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger. 

With the challenges we face in meeting the food and nutrition needs of our rapidly increasing population in an environmentally sustainable way, it is imperative that we step up dialogue and interdisciplinary research and development; catalyze and implement solution-oriented innovations with speed and urgency; and drive policy changes to effect the needed transformations in our global food supply chains. This program convenes experts from multiple disciplines in the food system to discuss advances in gene-related techniques and other technologies and developments being pursued to enhance agricultural outcomes, food loss and waste reduction, and drive sustainability. How global food trade, politics and policy interplay will also be addressed.

More consumers are caring about sustainability at the farm level. The origin of food ingredients and their sustainability are stepping into the spotlight, especially as consumers care more about transparency. As consumers are interested in claims related to farmer welfare, soil health and regenerative agriculture, ingredient companies will have to share more information with manufacturers.

Food safety is non-negotiable and a concept that consumers rightly demand! Achieving food safety across the food chain is a formidable challenge involving a complex matrix of interacting factors and the need for an exquisite understanding of them all. The recent past has seen great progress in controlling foodborne illness through (i) understanding infectious agents/their route into the food chain; (ii) detection/identification methods; (iii) process control mechanisms; (iv) adaptation/application of new technologies; (v) education of processors/handlers/consumers; (vi) validation/verification controls; and (vii) rigorous regulatory environment (e.g. FSMA). Despite all these advances, foodborne illness is on the rise accelerated by rapid growth/ageing of the population, urbanization, lack of sanitation in developing economies, mass tourism/international travel, conflict, and globalization of trade. The WHO recently noted “. . . the journey from where our food comes from to how it ends on our plate is longer and more complex than ever before. Food safety risks exist at every step. Our food safety and control systems must adapt and work together across sectors, along the entire food chain” (Kruse, H.J. (2015) Food safety in an international perspective. Verbr. Lebensm. 10, 105-107). Integration of oversight/control mechanisms will be critical in ensuring a safe food supply, and open/transparent communication will be essential. This symposium will explore how (i) traceability; (ii) blockchain technology; and (iii) validation/verification requirements (FSMA) interconnect, and implications for food manufacturers, consumers, and global trade.

As the human population grows, it is ever more important to sustain rather than increase levels of consumption from earth and its ecosphere. Current sources of protein are unsustainable. Already 70% of agricultural land, 30% of the land on earth, is used for livestock. Diversification of our food supply is critical for food security. The good news is that farm raised insects, such as crickets, mealworms and others, hold promise as a sustainable solution. They utilize less energy, feed, land and water than other livestock and contribute less to climate change and pollution. They are gaining already momentum as a food ingredient. Since about 2011, over 50 companies in North America and 80 in Europe offer food products with insects as a key ingredient. This symposium will highlight the latest in cutting edge research and the state of the new industry developing insects as sustainable food ingredients and a class of new commodities for the food industry (protein isolates and extracts, whole insect based ingredients such as cricket powder, oil, fiber, and bioactives etc.). Our learning objectives for this symposium will be: (1) highlighting late breaking cutting edge research and technology in insect farming, genetics, genomics, processing, functionality evaluation, and product development and (2) understanding the functionality of insect based food ingredients, the benefits of these ingredients, and how they can be used in the food industry.

Citrus is the most widely produced fruit in the world and grown in more than 80 countries. A wide spectrum of products are obtained from citrus fruits, which are extracted and purified into essential oils, antioxidants, and other compounds. Citrus oils, by-products of citrus juice processing, are among the most popular natural raw materials in flavor and fragrance-driven consumer goods. Carbonates, fruit and chewing gums, beer mixes, toothpastes, perfumes, household cleaners, and many other products partially depend on the citrus oils as flavor and fragrance ingredients. However, the supply side of citrus oils does not look bright. Climate instability is taking its toll on the citrus harvest and global fruit availability. Citrus greening disease or HLB (Huanglongbing) is affecting all varieties of citrus and has had a devastating impact on Florida and other regions including Mexico, Brazil, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia. The market demand for fresh citrus fruits and citrus oils is as high as always. This symposium will focus on the theme of citrus oil and citrus flavor sustainability.

It is estimated that the world wastes about 1.6 gigatons of food, where 1.3 gigatons represents the edible portion of the food lost, which could otherwise be recovered and diverted into high value products. In horticulture, this translates into global economic losses of at least $320 billion, as reported by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. The fruit and vegetable chains undergo 10-60% losses before retail, depending on the country and region, while consumer losses can scale up to a wastage of 60% of the food consumed in industrialized countries. This symposium will provide a selection of the work carried out around the world to minimize food losses through diversion and value addition across horticultural chains.