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European Technology Platform on Food for Life

The vision for 2020 and beyond

Core Team

Chairman: Dr Jan Maat Unilever, The NetherlandsCo-Chairman: Dr Daniele Rossi SPES - CIAA, Belgium

In alphabetical order:

Prof. Dr Andrzej Babuchowski University of Warmia & Mazury, PolandDr Fred Beekmans Wageningen University and Research Centre, The NetherlandsDr Jacqueline Castenmiller Wageningen Centre for Food Sciences, The NetherlandsDr Roger Fenwick Institute of Food Research, UKDr Josef Haber BASF, GermanyDr Tim Hogg FIPA, PortugalMs Daniela Israelachwili CIAA, BelgiumMs Beate Kettlitz CIAA, BelgiumDr Jürgen Kohnke Pfeifer & Langen, Germany Dr Kerstin Lienemann Initiativkreis Agrar- und Ernährungsforschung, GermanyMr Didier Majou ACTIA, FranceProf. Dr Brigitte Petersen GIQS, GermanyProf. Dr Gerhard Schiefer Bonn University, GermanyDr Federico Morais FIAB, Spain

A number of organisations provided input to this document. This does not in any way indicate explicit approval or endorsement of the document’s views,visions or opinions by any individual organisation.

For more information on the ETP, visit our website http://etp.ciaa.be

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Foreword

It has long been recognized that whilst the quality and quantity of Europe’s research community matchthose of North America and the Pacific Rim, the wider impact of this research is lower than that of thesetrading competitors because of the less effective transfer of this knowledge to industry.

In order to address this so-called European Paradox and strengthen the European-wide innovationprocess, the European Commission has introduced the concept of European Technology Platforms where-by relevant stakeholders in key economic sectors commit themselves to working together to identify theinnovation challenge, develop the necessary research programme and implement the results.

Under the auspices of CIAA, the umbrella organisation of the European agro-food industry, this EuropeanTechnology Platform Food for Life addresses these requirements for the agro-food industry, the largestmanufacturing sector in Europe. There is an increasing societal awareness of the opportunities to improvethe quality of life through healthy eating and of the contribution that sustainable production can maketo improvement of the overall environment. The preferences of consumers for quality, convenience, diver-sity and health, and their justifiable expectations of safety, ethics and sustainable food production serveto highlight the opportunities for innovation. In some sectors, such as food safety, process engineeringand sustainability, Europe is already a world leader and innovation and investment is high. It is thus avery obvious target for innovation.

Unlike many other sectors, agro-food has not previously developed a structure to bring all of its stake-holder communities together. Thanks to the enthusiasm of the Core Team, the initial stages of buildingthis ETP have, therefore, already achieved a great deal. These activities, however well intentioned, wouldhave little value had not the individual stakeholders subsequently so positively indicated their supportand commitment.

This document describing the vision for 2020 and beyond is thus only a beginning, but one that pro-vides a firm basis for the next stages of consultation, discussion and debate leading to a StrategicResearch Agenda and Implementation Plan. During this period, every opportunity will be sought to workclosely with complementary ETPs, including those on Plants for the Future and Global Animal Health,with the EU Platform on Diet, Physical Activity and Health, and with individual new instruments sup-ported through the Framework Programmes. In this way we believe the Platform will most effectivelyorganize and deliver innovation.

We look forward to the challenges ahead of us with optimism, in the knowledge that by working togetherwith individuals, companies, including SMEs, and organisations from EU Member States, Associated-,Accession- and Candidate Countries we can give shape to the European Research Area, enhance theimpact of EU R&D development, create competitiveness and deliver tangible benefits to the Europeancitizen. In this manner we can also ensure that Europe is both a global leader in innovation across theentire agro-food chain and a region that offers outstanding career opportunities to its young people.

Brussels, 5th July 2005

Mr Jean Martin Dr Jan MaatPresident of CIAA Chairman, ETP Core Team

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Contents

Foreword 3

Executive summary 5

1. Introduction 6

2. Current situation 11

3. The vision 13

4. Achieving the vision 18

4.1 Food and health 18

4.2 Food quality and manufacturing 21

4.3 Food and consumer 23

4.4 Food safety 25

4.5 Sustainable food production 27

4.6 Food chain management 29

4.7 Communication, training and technology transfer 31

4.8 Horizontal issues 33

4.8.1 Integrating activities: clustering and networking 33

4.8.2 Scenario studies 34

5. Platform organisation 35

Endnotes - Bibliography 36

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Executive summary

Vision of the European Technology Platform on Food for LifeAn effective integration of strategically-focussed, trans-national, concerted research in the nutritional-, food-and consumer sciences and food chain management will deliver innovative, novel and improved food prod-ucts for, and to, national, regional and global markets in line with consumer needs and expectations. Theseproducts, together with recommended changes in dietary regimes and lifestyles, will have a positive impacton public health and overall quality of life (‘adding life to years’). Such targeted activities will support a suc-cessful and competitive pan-European agro-food industry having global business leadership securely basedon economic growth, technology transfer, sustainable food production and consumer confidence.

The European agro-food industry is the largest manu-facturing sector in Europe. The food and drink indus-try had a turnover of 810 billion euro in 2004, trans-forming over 70% of the EU’s agricultural raw materi-als and employing over 4 million people, the majoritywithin the SMEs sector. The European agro-foodindustry is a leading global exporter and it affords sig-nificant added value and offers scope for growth withinnew EU Member States, development of regionaleconomies and exploitation of cultural diversity andtradition. The European agro-food industry is thus cen-tral to the wider, economic development of Europe.

There is an increasing societal awareness of the oppor-tunities to improve the quality of life through healthyeating and of the contribution that sustainable pro-duction can make to improvement of the overall envi-ronment. The preferences of consumers for quality,convenience, diversity and health, and their justifiableexpectations of safety, ethics and sustainable foodproduction serve to highlight the opportunities forinnovation. In some sectors, such as food safety,process engineering and sustainability, Europe isalready a world leader and innovation and investmentis high.

A coherent research strategy for the future must bedeveloped based upon the shared vision of the diversestakeholders. Key elements of this flexible strategycomprise initiatives in food and health, food qualityand manufacturing, food and consumer, food safety,sustainable food production and food chain manage-ment. These elements are to be supported by effectivestrategies for communication, training and technologytransfer.

A step-change in research intensity and investment,together with effective technology transfer, is a prereq-uisite for ensuring that the European agro-food sectorremains innovative and competitive. The private andpublic resources available for food research at thenational level are insufficient to meet the challengesthat will arise if the objective of adding ‘life to years’ isto be achieved. The Technology Platform Food for Lifewill galvanise the resources available at the nationaland EU level and ensure effective co-operation underthe umbrella of a coherent Strategic Research Agendaand its associated Implementation Plan.

The European Technology Platform Food for Life will:

■ Support a sustainable, successful and competitivepan-European agro-food industry;

■ Provide increased employment and entrepreneur-ial opportunities for all of Europe;

■ Ensure that the healthy choice becomes the easychoice;

■ Underpin regulation and support policy making atnational and regional level;

■ Contribute to sustainable development in Europe;

■ Enhance the ability of the European agro-foodindustries to create and exploit market opportuni-ties that are less sensitive to price competition;and

■ Promote the ‘fork to farm’ approach to add valueto food chains.

In addition, the European Technology Platform Foodfor Life will:

■ Provide an effective and sustained interactionbetween all stakeholders;

■ Present a well-defined Strategic Research Agenda(SRA) for innovative food production;

■ Offer an Implementation Plan that will includemobilization of resources to support pan-Europeancollaborative research; training, education anddissemination;

■ Ensure increased confidence in the food supplyamongst European consumers;

■ Significantly reduce health costs; and

■ Enhance long-term career opportunities inEuropean food science and technology.

European Technology Platform on Food for Life The vision for 2020 and beyond

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1. Introduction

Food and drinks can contribute significantlyto the welfare and well-being of Europeancitizens…

The food and drink industry is a powerhouse ofthe European economy, transforming over 70% ofthe EU’s agricultural raw materials and employ-ing over 4 million people, the majority (60%)within the SMEs sector, supporting some 280,000companies, of these 99% are SMEs, and gener-ating a positive trade balance with the rest of theworld (1). The agricultural sector employs over11 million people (2.3% of the population of theenlarged EU), many of who live in rural or less-developed areas of Europe.

The European agro-food industry provides theconsumer with a wide variety of products and

Figure 1. The future market paradigm

1. Sustenance

• Commodity• Price• Taste• Tradition• Basic nutrition

5. Situation

• Point of consumption

Internal External• Value for money • Quality• Price • Experience• Unconcerned • Responsibility• Reliance on others • Taste

• Ultimate (at the time)

2. Social function

• Traditional & exotic• Basic added value• Basic convenience• Taste

4. Enhancement

• Global & local choice• Quality & value• Health / function• Convenience• ‘Eatertainment’

3. Enjoyment

• Indulgence• Healthy options• Wide variety• Convenience

Source: Promar International, Where next in food?, 2003

services, showing a continuous change over timein many countries (see also Figure 1). The futuremarket will be influenced by:

■ What we consume: from energy intake tohealthy, wholesome and varied diets;

■ When we consume: from regular meals to graz-ing and snacking;

■ Where we consume: from domestic to out-of-home;

■ With whom we consume: from social events toindividual food intake;

■ How we prepare our food: from raw materials toready-to-eat and heat-to-eat.

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Foods and drinks, in the right amounts and pro-portions, make a major contribution to the well-being and healthy ageing of European citizens.Despite the increasing tendency for grazing andconsumer demand for convenience foods, dinnerremains one of the most important social andfamily events of the day in most European coun-tries; in this respect, foods and drinks also bringpleasure to living.

The European agro-food industry is seeking todevelop affordable, new and traditional products,which incorporate healthiness, convenience, areof high quality and safe to eat. Despite the vari-ous food scandals of the recent past and theensuing loss of consumer confidence in food pro-duction, our food supply has never been safer.Moreover, its safety is continually increasing, inpart as a consequence of major R&D investmentsin food safety by national and European govern-ments, and through the establishment of theEuropean Food Safety Authority.

… but lifestyles are changing

Although manufactured foods are safer than ever,excessive food intake, in conjunction with adecrease in physical activity has led to anincrease of lifestyle-related diseases in Europeansociety. In the medium- to long-term, lifestyle-related diseases (such as obesity, coronary and

heart diseases, and type 2 diabetes) will increaseto unacceptable levels if appropriate measuresare not taken now 1. The agro-food industry recog-nises its responsibility in this area. Nonethelessmore effort is required from the agro-food indus-try to provide the European consumers withhealthy, convenient and tasty foods, and toinform consumers as to how such a diet, as partof a healthy lifestyle, can add life to years.

The agro-food industry is the largest sectorin Europe...

The agriculture and food sectors are vitally impor-tant to the European economy. Together, theyrepresent the third largest employer in Europeproviding 16 million jobs in the EU-25 and thesecond largest exporter of foodstuffs globally,with agricultural exports worth 61,088 billioneuro in 2002 (source: Eurostat).

The food and drink industry is the largest manu-facturing sector in Europe with a turnover of 810billion euro in 2004 (1). The sector is also animportant pillar of the economy in many EUMember States (as shown in Figure 2). In 2001,for example, the industry generated some 185billion euro of value addition in the EU-25, 17billion euro of which originated from the ten newMember States (2).

Others 28.2%

The Netherlands 5.3%Belgium 4.1%Poland 3.4%Denmark 2.5%Sweden 2.1%Ireland 2.0%Austria 1.5%Portugal 1.5%Greece 1.3%Finland 1.2%Hungary 1.2%France

18.4%Germany17.3%

UK13.7%

Italy13.9%

Spain8.4%

France, Germany, Italy, UK and Spain are the largestEU-25 food and drink producers; together they accountfor more than 80% of total EU production.

Source: Eurostat, SBS, 2003

Figure 2. Share of national food and drink industry in EU-25 turnover (%), 2003

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The food and drink industry covers a market of450 million consumers in the EU. In 2003, theEU exported food products valued at 39.8 billioneuro to the rest of the world and imported foodworth 39.4 billion euro – reflecting an averageannual growth of 4.5% and 4.3% respectively,for the period 1999-2003. The EU has become amajor exporter of many foodstuffs and is the sec-ond biggest global exporter with agriculturalexports worth almost 62 billion euro in 2002.The main destination of exports from the expand-ed Union is the United States, followed by Japan,Russia and Switzerland.

The EU is also the biggest global importer of agri-cultural products. In 2002 EU imports of agri-cultural products were valued at over 61 billioneuro; the most important supplier of EU foodproducts and beverages in 2002 was Brazil,which surpassed the United States andArgentina. Thus, the European agro-food industryis a leading global exporter with a positive tradebalance. Despite these positive figures, overallgrowth of the food and drink industry was limitedto 1.9% in 2003 (1).

The European food and drink industry transformsmore than 70% of the raw material supply fromEuropean farmers into added value products.Moreover, it imports many raw materials fromaround the world and re-exports them after pro-cessing. This ability to add value provides theEuropean agro-food industry with a significantcompetitive advantage. However, changing atti-tudes and behaviour in society and new andemerging consumer trends necessitate constantrenewal of products and product concepts at anever increasing pace. The agro-food industrymust, therefore, constantly innovate its processesand products to remain competitive.

… but its competitiveness is at risk

The leading position of the EU agro-food industrywill be threatened in the medium- to long-term ifeffective measures are not taken to improve itsinnovative power. Given the size and importanceof this sector, such a decline will have serious‘knock on’ repercussions for the European econ-omy (employment, income, and growth) as awhole. Additional factors contributing to this sit-uation include:

■ Other economies recognise the importance ofinnovation just as much as the EU does.Innovation in US and Japan is continuing andnew economies, such as China and India, areemerging. Adding value through product devel-opment alone will be insufficient to create therequired innovations to compete with theseeconomies.

■ The European agro-food industry recognises itsrole in the prevention of lifestyle-related dis-eases. However, this new and comprehensivearea requires completely new and innovativeconcepts, which cannot be introduced andexploited without substantial and targeted R&Dinvestments.

■ There is increased competition from non-EU,low-cost countries. Hence, competing on costalone will not be sustainable in the long-term forthe EU. In addition to a sustained attention tocompetitive cost reduction, the future of the EUfood and drink industry lies in the production ofvalue-added, quality goods using its technicalknow how, developing its capacity for innovationand further improving quality attributes to main-tain and increase its share of world markets. Inthe absence of a sustained level of innovationand technological advance within the EU, thereis a greater likelihood that EU markets will beincreasingly supplied by companies investingoutside its borders, attracted by lower employ-ment costs and a reduced regulatory burden.

■ Research efforts have been rather fragmentedand low due, in part, to the atypical composi-tion of the sector with its very many SMEs. Ingeneral, small-sized companies do not investgreatly in R&D. Large companies tend to focusmore on marketing, since the strategy of ‘sell-ing the emotional benefits’ of food has provedvery profitable, and it is difficult to retainexclusive market share for long enough to givea return on capital investment. As a result,there are no effective drivers for large R&Dinvestment in industry. National governmentsand the EU have further contributed to frag-mentation by not supporting breakthrough sci-ence for the agro-food sector because theirfocus has been largely, and understandably,centred on food safety.

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How to sharpen the innovation edge

A key asset of the EU agro-food industry (includ-ing plant-, animal- and fish production) is its cul-tural diversity, regional specialisation and long-standing tradition. Nonetheless, innovation isessential if it is to respond to consumer demandsregarding quality, health, safety, diversity, con-venience and affordability. The integration of therich traditions of European cuisine with the inno-vation-driven market place represents a great andconstant challenge, but it is one that must, andsurely can be, met.

In this Vision Document the following steps areproposed in order to generate a competitiveEuropean agro-food sector that offers growth ofthe European economy in a sustainable manner:

■ Focussing European innovation efforts on thefollowing topics: Food and Health, Food Qualityand Manufacturing, Food and Consumer, FoodSafety, Sustainable Food Production and FoodChain Management, but ensuring that all R&Dinitiatives in these broad areas are holisticallyconceived across all of the themes with the per-spective of the consumer as a major driver (the‘fork-to-farm’ approach). Improvements inCommunication, Training and TechnologyTransfer are a prerequisite.

■ Increasing R&D investments from private- andfrom public organisations and target researchon the priorities of a shared vision.

■ Involving SMEs in the innovation processes.

■ Aligning European, national and private funds(European Investment Bank, venture capitalists).

■ Creating and supporting partnerships that inno-vate more effectively and which utilise knowl-edge that can be applied to the food sector.Examples are the manufacturing sector, phar-ma, health insurance sectors, etc.

■ Generating and exploiting alternative businessmodels.

■ Improving innovation processes: R&D, technol-ogy transfer, blending of technologies.

■ Effectively disseminating results; training peo-ple so as to provide the means by which theimpact of the Platform is maximised.

YES to European Technology Platform onFood for Life

In earlier Framework Programmes (FPs), andespecially within FPs 5 and 6, a particular prior-ity was assigned to Food Quality and Safety(interpreted within a ‘food chain’ context). A con-tinuation of R&D efforts of a significantlyincreased size in FP7 is considered indispensa-ble given the importance of the food sector forthe welfare and well-being of European society,its significance for job creation and regionaldevelopment, and the overall competitiveness ofthe economy at both national and European level 2.

The European Commission proposes betterframework conditions to foster integration ofresearch activities and co-ordination of researchand innovation policies, which justifies a signifi-cant boost of resources to research since techno-logical development and innovation are at theheart of the knowledge-based economy (3). Inthis context, the European Commission’s recent-ly-published working paper on FP7, which pro-poses an 83% annualised budget increase forFood, Agriculture and Biotechnology, the knowl-edge-based bio-economies cooperative themecompared to FP6 is to be welcomed (4).

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European Technology Platforms (ETPs) are struc-tures that bring together companies, researchers(from both the natural and social sciences), con-sumers, the financial world and regulatoryauthorities at European level to define a commonStrategic Research Agenda, which shouldmobilise a critical mass of – national andEuropean – public and private resources.

A European Technology Platform on Food for Lifeis, therefore proposed on the basis of its:

■ Societal relevance: Positive impact onCommunity policies (integration of research,increase in research expenditure, involvementSMEs); positive impact on health status of theEuropean society; positive contribution to thequality of life of Europeans; addressing theconsumer concerns over food safety.

■ Potential for future growth: Growth will occurthrough a transition to the development of new,high added-value products, the exploitation ofnew technologies and the more effectivedemonstration that technological developmentwill bring consumers real benefits.

■ Competitiveness: European competitivenessmust be strengthened through exploitation ofthe existing high quality European foods tomeet the needs of expanding markets, andwhich will have a major impact on well-beingand welfare. Excellence and innovation is thekey to European industrial competitiveness.

■ Promotion of sustainable food production:Multiple stakeholders will be brought togetherthrough a common vision and StrategicResearch Agenda. This will prevent fragmenta-tion, contribute to an increased sustainabilityof the European agro-food sector, guaranteetransdisciplinarity, and facilitate the develop-ment of new business models.

The European Technology Platform on Food forLife represents a timely and unique opportunityto actively promote a better co-ordinated EU foodand nutrition research activity. It will ensure thatkey competences within Europe’s research com-munity are extended across all EU MemberStates through exchange, training and dissemi-nation.

This document describes the current situation,expected future developments and required R&Defforts and integration activities in the area offood and health. It is clear that individual EUMember States will find themselves at differentstages of the development process. As a result, aspectrum of approaches, and flexibility of overallmanagement, will be required throughoutEurope, as will be communication, training, edu-cation and technology transfer.

Concept of European Technology PlatformsStakeholders coming together to define, and implement, a Strategic Research Agenda on a number ofstrategically important issues with high societal relevance where achieving Europe’s future growth, com-petitiveness and sustainable objectives is dependent upon major research and technological advances inthe medium- to long-term.


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2. Current situation

Growth and the changed retailer-producerlandscape

In the developed world, organic growth in thefood market has been slow (less than 1% annu-ally) and the relative proportion of expenditure onfood is declining. This situation is further com-pounded by the increasing bargaining power ofretailers, which serves to depress suppliers’ mar-gins even further.

Two key factors play an important role in thechanging food market place. Firstly, economicdevelopment, movement from an industrial econ-omy to a service economy, brings with it newemployment patterns, time-usage attributes, con-sumer segmentation and eating habits, all ofwhich exert an impact on food consumption.Secondly, consumer evolution and awareness hasturned a somewhat predictable body of con-sumers into small groups, each requiring thattheir own agenda and behavioural patterns(which are both more selective and less pre-dictable) can be met by the market.

Food safety, consumers and regulatoryaffairs

Consumers in Europe rightly demand safe foodbut their trust in the market to provide such foodshas been shaken by past scares that have beencaused in many instances by adulteration (e.g.the dioxin crisis) or by the appearance of novelpathogenic agents (e.g. BSE). Some of theseepisodes have been associated, rightly or wrong-ly, with technological developments. Whereasconsumers are able to accept that, within thepharmaceutical sector, there are risks and bene-fits associated with drugs, this concept still hasto be widely understood in relation to foods.

The concept of risk assessment, which underpinsthe regulatory process, only focuses on the poten-tial to cause harm. The concept of benefit assess-ment, or more appropriately risk-benefit assess-ment, has not been developed or applied.

If the market is to respond to an increasingdemand for healthy eating, significantly greaterresources will need to be invested in research, tosupport health claims. Sensitivity to the price offood items will also restrict what the market candeliver to the European consumer, unless some ofthese costs can be met by the public sector pro-viding the underpinning scientific research thatwill be required.

Food and health, well-being and welfare

Health (16%) and well-being (12%) account fornearly one third of the drivers for innovation inEurope (1). These figures reflect the growingglobal demand from consumers for healthierdiets. R&D efforts in this area will further help tofuel growth in the European agro-food industry.New products will have to fit the needs, lifestylesand incomes of consumers.

As the security of the food supply has improved,and certain food costs decreased in relation todisposable income in Europe in the last decades,consumers are consuming more energy in relationto the amount of energy expended. Taken togeth-er, these changes lead to a rapid increase in obe-sity and its associated health problems (type 2diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular dis-eases, stroke, a range of cancer types and arthri-tis). Scientific evidence suggests that diet plays akey role in the aetiology of these diseases both interms of the type of diet consumed and the over-all effect of increased obesity. For example, evi-dence suggests that 30-40% of all cases of can-cer is causally-related to nutritional factors (5).

However, care is required to distinguish the shareof disease attributable to poor diets and thatavoidable through better diets. The latter mayinclude chronic non-infectious diseases withlinks to diet, such as cardiovascular diseases andcancer, and those that may not kill but neverthe-less are costly to health services, such as dentaldisease and hypertension. Deficiency diseases,such as those related to deficiencies of iodineand iron, remain widespread in parts of Europe,including sub-populations in Western Europeancountries (5).

Population-based nutrition programmes arerequired to translate population targets into prac-tice. Such programmes include measures rangingfrom specific advice on healthy lifestyles to con-trols over food labelling, health claims and adver-tising. Messages supporting healthy eating needto be consistent, widely accepted and promotedby all stakeholders. Existing measures appear tohave been largely ineffective and new ideas,backed by and tested through sociologicalresearch are essential.

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Traditionally, nutritional goals have been set atpopulation level but genomic technologies arerevealing that the balance of risk/benefit will varyaccording to phenotype, and that there will bediffering requirements for sectors of the popula-tion, including ethnic and immigrant groups,whose situation has been hitherto inadequatelyaddressed. It may well be that foods of benefit tosome sectors of the population offer reducedbenefit to others. There could be an increasingdevelopment of specialised food products abovethose already classified as ‘foods for specificnutritional purposes’.

The health of the ageing population ofEurope

The European population is ageing and futurechanges in both population demographics andlife span necessitate a ‘healthy ageing’ approach.Healthy behaviour is related not only to a higherchance of survival but also to a delay in the dete-rioration of health status. Ideal healthy ageing isdescribed as a situation in which people surviveto an advanced age with their vigour and func-tional independence maintained, and with mor-bidity and disability compressed into a relativelyshort period before death (6). People in their 50sand above have special needs, in particular densefood products, and an interest in their health andappearance. These concerns will be reflected intheir choice of foods. The food and drink indus-try must thus produce innovative foods high innutrients which, in combination with a healthylife style and compliance with advice for healthyageing, will improve the quality of life and addlife to years.

Within the EU alone, the number of people agedover 80 years is estimated to increase by about30% over the next 50 years (5). Because lifeexpectancy is increasing, a larger proportion ofthe population is older. For a variety of physical,social and psychological reasons, older adults arelikely to confront a variety of nutritional problemsand actively seek dietary solutions through thepurchase of appropriate products.

Food chain management and environmentalissues

The management of the food chain requirescross-disciplinary competences and represents asignificant challenge for the future agro-food sec-tor. Through the utilisation of new technologiesand business practices, all aspects of economicefficiency, marketing and environmental controlmust be considered and fully integrated in orderto ensure high quality and safe food for the con-

sumers. Environmental issues, especially theneed to develop farming methods that are sus-tainable in the long-term, will have an increasingimpact on food production3 .

The changing function of food demands the shiftfrom supply-driven markets to demand-drivenmarkets. Changes in food regulation and economyseek the use of new and reliable strategies andways of communication between the various andcomplex food value chains. The consumer interestin quality and variety demands the choicebetween a broad range of food products and con-sumer acceptance of the new food is the final cri-terion for a successful market introduction.Accordingly, it will be necessary to take into con-sideration the consumers’ point of view at everystage of food product development, processingand marketing (the ‘fork-to-farm’ perspective).

R&D is needed to move forward

The agro-food industry in Europe is facing anuncertain future. Not only are there demographicconstraints that are limiting the growth of exist-ing markets (declining birth rate, ageing popula-tions etc.), there are growing societal concernsabout the long-term health effects of diets.

Other issues that require a concerted action anddemand new, joint collaborations, such as public-private partnerships in research to maintain aglobal, competitive position of the EU agro-foodindustry include:

■ Consumer demand for high-quality, tasty foods;

■ Consumer demand for safe foods, whereincreasing regulation of products is having anegative impact on innovation;

■ The specific problems of locally-based compa-nies and SMEs that require incremental inno-vations (packaging, shelf-life, processing);

■ Improvements in technology transfer to trans-late research results into innovative products orprocesses;

■ New developments in scientific research andtechnological advances in food processing;

■ Opening of borders and agricultural develop-ments have led to a changing retailer-producerrelationship. Agriculture and food must be fullyintegrated within the political, social, econom-ical and cultural dynamics of society.

In order for the sector to advance, targeted, trans-disciplinary research is needed, that will requirethe support and commitment of diverse stake-holders and an increased investment in R&D.

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3. The vision

Key technology priorities

To improve the quality of life of Europeans andunderpin the growth and competitiveness of theagro-food industry by innovation, six key interact-ing areas are proposed: Food and Health, FoodQuality and Manufacturing, Food and Consumer,Food Safety, Sustainable Food Production, andFood Chain Management (see Figure 3). Theseareas will be supported by effective strategies forCommunication, Training and TechnologyTransfer. The forthcoming Strategic ResearchAgenda will include details of the main researchissues to be addressed for each area.

The vision of the ETP on Food for Life is that an effective integration of strategically-focussed, trans-national, concerted research in the nutritional-, food- and consumer sciences and food chain manage-ment will deliver innovative, novel and improved food products for, and to, national, regional and globalmarkets in line with consumer needs and expectations. These products, together with recommendedchanges in dietary regimes and lifestyles, will have a positive impact on public health and overall qual-ity of life (‘adding life to years’). Such targeted activities will support a successful and competitive pan-European agro-food industry having global business leadership securely based on economic growth, tech-nology transfer, sustainable food production and consumer confidence.

The development of a European TechnologyPlatform (ETP) on Food for Life, bringing togeth-er the industry, both large and small, their supplychains and associations, the research communi-ty, regulators, consumer bodies and representa-tives of the European Commission, will enhancethe well-being and welfare of the European con-sumer by increasing and focussing the R&Dinvestment and promoting innovation in thisimportant sector of the European economy.

This Platform assumes the ‘fork-to-farm’ philoso-phy, i.e. consumer demands will drive the R&Dand innovation needs. Attention is specificallydevoted to the development of new products andprocesses in the post harvest chain, since mostconsumer value is expected to be added at thisstage. However, research requirements mayinvolve, where relevant, aspects of primary pro-duction - for example, the development and sup-ply of raw materials possessing specific health- orquality properties. It is self-evident that the totalfood chain has to be considered where issues offood safety, sustainable food production and foodchain management are concerned. In all cases aclose contact is foreseen with other related ETPs,such as Plants for the Future, Global AnimalHealth, and Future Manufacturing Technologies;close links will be fostered with ongoing and newFP6 Integrated Projects, Networks of Excellence,STREPs and Co-ordination Activities having animpact on the activities of this ETP.

Figure 3. Schematic presentation of theresearch areas required to reach the visionof the ETP Food for Life

Food Safety

Sustainable Food Production

Food Quality &

Manufacturing

Food &

Health

Food &

Consumer

Communication, Training &

Technology Transfer

Food Chain Management

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Food and HealthFood and eating habits are the most importantnon-genetic contributors to age-related diseases.Consequently it is important to understand howto choose diets and foods that will maximisehealth benefits. It is expected that lifestyle-relat-ed diseases will increase rapidly in the nextdecades together with the costs related to suchdiseases. As a direct consequence, prevention ofthese diseases becomes increasingly important.Healthy diets, changing eating habits andencouraging increased physical activity, are allkey determinants that will influence the rate ofageing and disease.

Focussed, collaborative food research willenable the development of innovative foodproducts and process innovations that willmake a major contribution to the well-beingand welfare of the European consumers.

Food Quality and ManufacturingInnovation not only leads to new products andproduction processes, but is also an importantdeterminant of productivity improvements andeconomic growth. Often innovation occurs whenthere is interaction with different research areas,but this demands effective and timely communi-cation.

New innovative manufacturing technologiesproviding high quality, novel or modified,healthy products with improved, attractivetaste and convenience will enhance the com-petitiveness and growth of the European foodsector.

Food and ConsumerIt is of paramount importance to address con-sumer needs and to understand how the healthychoice could be made the easy choice and to acton this knowledge. Much effort will be required tounderstand consumer attitudes, preferences,expectations and demands and to provide effec-tive communication to the consumer and toobtain an active interaction with consumers. Inthis context it is important to realise that theterm ‘European consumer’ embraces not justmain-stream populations, but also ethnic andimmigrant populations, whose eating habits anddiets may vary considerably and are currentlyonly relatively poorly examined.

In addition to these discriminators of research,qualifiers were identified, as follows:

Food SafetyThe continued attention and commitment toensuring food safety is, of course, a prerequisite.All new developments have to comply with cur-rent and future expectations regarding the safetyof the end product and the protection of the con-sumer against any threat to his or her health andwell-being on a short- and long-term. This impliesthat new technological developments have to beassessed thoroughly with respect to the possibleintroduction of undesired side-effects of microbi-ological, toxicological or physical nature.

Sustainable Food Production A sustainable food supply underpins the mostbasic requirements for quality of life. ThisPlatform seeks to profitably provide European cit-izens with safe-, high-quality, health-promoting-and affordable foods whilst meeting the increas-ing demands for sustainable food production asperceived from the economic-, environmental-,and social perspectives. Co-operation and inter-actions between individual ETPs will be a neces-sity in addressing these issues.

Food Chain ManagementIn addition to food quality and sustainable foodproduction, food chain management examinesthe complexibility of the different food valuechains (bread, pasta, meat, milk, etc.). Due to itscomplexity, all participants and processes in themanufacturing of a food and all management fac-tors such as safety, quality and efficiency need tobe studied in a management system simultane-ously. This will require an overall integration ofconsumer-added value characteristics for eachindividual process in the food chain.

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Communication, Training andTechnology TransferCommunication, training and technology transferwill be particularly directed at SMEs, ensuringthat developments in R&D will be effectivelyaccessed by this sector.

Improvements in communication, technologytransfer and networking, taking advantage ofnew technologies and management prac-tices, will be of enormous importance indeveloping durable co-operation betweenenterprises, and also across food processchains (including the consumer).

The Strategic Research Agenda will also includeadditional measures, such as those involving reg-ulatory affairs. It was recently recommended thatthere should be one body in each country, withoverall responsibility for dissemination of agreedEU policy and education, to ensure consistent andcorrect presentation of all messages on food, sothat consumers are not mislead or confused (7).The ETP will work closely with such bodies andcontribute to future discussions and debate onthis issue.

SMEs

Small- and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) arecentral to job creation and economic growth inthe European agro-food industry and will be cru-cial for its future success; they represent a keycomponent of both the innovation system and thechain that transforms knowledge into new foodproducts and processes. As a consequence, thisETP puts strong emphasis on the interests of,and opportunities for, SMEs across the EuropeanUnion. Strategies for improving the communica-tion and understanding of R&D know-how andimplementing processes for proactive technologytransfer will be developed, delivered and dissem-inated. The need to improve the ability of SMEs,in particular, and industry in general, to exploitknowledge and innovation is not confined to thefood chain but many SMEs in this sector aretechnologically unsophisticated.

This Platform will, therefore, interact closely withtrans-national networks and intermediary organi-sations charged with facilitating links betweenindustry and SMEs and the research communityso as to optimise exchange of information andexperience; fully integrate SME-opinion withinongoing discussion on research agendas andencourage their involvement in public/privateresearch and innovation projects.

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Figure 4. The food innovation cycle

Curiosity drivenresearch

Retailers

Universities

Food and food ingredient industries R&D

Research and technology organisation

Equipmentmanufacturers

ConsumerPublic-privatepartnership

Product development

Technologydevelopment

Applied research

Applicationorientedresearch

Source: W.M. de Vos & J.J.M. Castenmiller, WCFS, Wageningen, The Netherlands

The food innovation cycle

Universities, research and technology organisa-tions and food industries all carry out research.Although the quality of Europe’s basic science iscomparable to that of the USA and Japan, Europefalls behind in its ability to translate results intoinnovative breakthroughs (8). It was specificallyto address this European Paradox that the con-cept of ETPs has been promoted. Universitiesand fundamental research organisations are pri-marily responsible for curiosity-driven, genericand fundamental research. These activities feedthe food innovation cycle (Figure 4).

Although to some degree active in fundamentalresearch, research and technology organisationsare geared towards the application of (new) tech-nologies for problem solving or new product orprocess development. They complement theactivities of the industry and contribute to theinnovation cycle by focussing on development,trouble shooting and quality assurance. A pub-lic/private partnership, such as this Platform, canplay a crucial role by integrating industrial rele-vance and scientific excellence. Co-operation andalignment among the different partners in theinnovation cycle is required for innovation tooccur most effectively.

An ETP to achieve the vision

To achieve the vision outlined here in a sustain-able manner so as to ensure optimal well-beingand welfare for European consumers, very con-siderable, and co-ordinated, efforts are required.A collaborative approach to establish theresearch agendas (targets and timeframes) in anumber of priority areas of food and healthresearch will also be necessary. Furthermore, thePlatform should serve as a meeting place of per-sons working in all sectors of the food chain,bringing together expertise and competencesfrom different areas and from different (cultural)backgrounds so as better to address stakeholderneeds and policy delivery. Finally, the Platformmust be an engine for effective communication,knowledge transfer and training on issues thatare identified as priorities; in this way it willdirectly address the Triangle of Knowledge – theinteraction and dynamic linking of Research,Education and Innovation.

The future success and impact of the EU agro-food industry must lie in the production of value-added and quality goods using technical know-how, developing its capacity for innovation andpromoting its deeply-rooted food traditions tomaintain and increase its share in world markets.Given the size and nature of the European foodsector, achievements in this area will contributelargely to the welfare of society as a whole withinEurope, and individually within Member Statesand to the achievement of the revised LisbonCouncil ambitions.

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The ETP on Food for Life will be instrumental inrealising the vision by:

■ Creating a platform for quicker and more effec-tive, consumer-oriented and consumer-targetedfood innovation and establishing a critical massof resources, thereby linking with other plat-forms and disciplines;

■ Providing a long-term vision for food manufac-turing and food technologies in Europe that canenable a competitive, safe and sustainableagro-food industry;

■ Delivering a Strategic Research Agenda andassociated Implementation Plan for key tech-nology areas identified, assuring industrially-relevant research projects;

■ Identifying financial support for R&D from pub-lic and private funds;

■ Assessing socio-economic impacts (scenariostudies) of the Strategic Research Agenda;

■ Creating a multidisciplinary and integratingapproach to food-related issues;

■ Catalysing national initiatives and improvingthe co-ordination of the activities of theMember States and contributing to EU policyand legislative developments;

■ Providing a sustainable business model(including IPR);

■ Affording an enabling environment for pre-com-petitive research and excellence through com-petition at the European level and transnation-al collaboration;

■ Stimulating communication and education andtraining of persons in various disciplines,including technology transfer to SMEs; and

■ Improving the well-being and welfare of theEuropean society as a whole.

The way forward and impact of the EuropeanTechnology Platform on Food for Life will include:

■ Organisation of discussion meetings to reach ashared vision for a European Platform on Foodfor Life among a wide range of stakeholders 4

from the agro-food and related industries, agro-chemical industry, retailers, research institutes,regulators and consumer organisations. Thiswill create an effective and sustained interac-tion among stakeholders. The meetings will beorganised at the European level and at nationallevel, under the umbrella of the ETP;

■ Securing agreement on, and commitment to, aStrategic Research Agenda for innovative foodproduction, the roadmap describing how thisshared vision can be realised;

■ Development of an Implementation Plan, anaction plan for implementing the StrategicResearch Agenda that will include mobilizationof resources to support pan-European collabo-rative research, training, education and dis-semination. This long-term action plan encom-passes collaborative public/private R&D activi-ties, training, teaching, capacity building, inno-vation management and required facilities; and

■ Execution of the research proposed and priori-tised by the stakeholders in the Platform(exploiting the integrated excellence ofEurope’s professionals) after securing R&Dexpenditure from industry, the EC, and nation-al governments. This research will increaseconfidence in the food supply amongstEuropean consumers; reduce national andregional health costs; contribute to food pro-duction in Europe that is economically-, envi-ronmentally- and socially sustainable.

4.1 Food and health

The vision of the ETP Food for Life is that changes in dietary regimens based on devel-opments in nutritional sciences and new innovative product formats, together withconcomitant changes in lifestyle can have a major impact on improving public health

and increasing productive life. These changes will contribute significantly to reducingthe overall costs of health care.

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4. Achieving the vision


The OECD has concluded that investment in, andexploitation of, knowledge remain key drivers ofinnovation, economic performance and socialwell-being. Formal and informal co-operationbetween institutions has become crucial for reap-ing the full benefits of knowledge creation andfostering the development of new technologicalinnovations (9). Many research challenges willonly be met if public and private resources aremobilised across Europe in a concerted manner.

Having identified the most important areas forthe future of the European agro-food sector,research priorities can be drawn up for the mid-dle- and long-term. There is a need to focus onthe consumer as the most important element inthe food chain, and to reconstruct and strength-en the chain of individual elements of the foodproduction and distribution process from this(‘fork-to-farm’) perspective.

Balanced diets and healthy lifestyles

A balanced diet and healthy lifestyle are both keyrequirements for optimal mental and physicaldevelopment and performance as well as for areduction in the risk of chronic non-communica-ble diseases. Moreover, their impact is exerted atall stages of human life, e.g. from the prenatal tothe elderly. The addition of nutrients to foods atphysiological doses or higher concentrations hasled to the production of functional foods andfoods for particular nutritional use. Proper com-munication of these nutritional benefits requireshealth claims that can be scientifically substan-tiated. The discovery and validation of biomark-ers based on epidemiological studies, cellular-and physiological studies (including the outputsof systems biology) and intervention studies areall essential to this substantiation process.

The health of the ageing population

The population of Europe is ageing - within theEU alone, the number of people over 80 years isestimated to increase by about 30% over the next50 years. For a variety of reasons, older adults areconsidered to be at increased risk of nutritionalproblems, either as a result of impaired foodintake or reduced nutrient utilisation. Healthy liv-ing is related not only to a higher chance of sur-vival but also to a delayed deterioration of healthstatus.

It is estimated that by the year 2030 nearly 30%of the European population will be over 60 witha concomitant increase in physical and cognitivedysfunctions.

The challenge for the long-term will be to influ-ence an individual’s state of ageing and to deliv-er a personal regime of nutrients, lifestyle andadvice for healthy longevity - adding ‘life to years’(Figure 5).

Food Safety


Food Quality &

Manufacturing


Technology Transfer


Food &

Health

Food &

Consumer

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Changes in lifestyle and dietary patterns

An unhealthy diet has been known for many yearsto play a key role as a risk factor for chronic dis-eases. Because of changes in dietary and lifestylepatterns, chronic non-communicable diseases –including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular dis-ease, hypertension and stroke, and some types ofcancers – are becoming increasingly significantcauses of disability and premature death in devel-oped, but also in developing and newly-developed,countries. These chronic diseases also cause psy-chological- and social problems in people, reducephysical fitness and impact on the quality of life.

Currently, the most important dietary need inWestern society is to control life-style related dis-eases, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Theprevalence of overweight and obese populationshas reached global epidemic proportions (20-30%in adults, escalating rates in children) (6). A sharprise in overweight children in Western societies hasbeen observed over the past decade. Obesity,insulin resistance, hypertension, and hyperlipi-demia - collectively described as metabolic syn-drome - are all major causes of morbidity and mor-tality in these societies. In Western Europeancountries the associated costs are estimated to bearound 5% of the total costs of health care. Inaddition, the indirect health costs as a result ofoverweight- and obese populations are about fourtimes higher than the direct costs. A major currentconcern today is the increase in glucose intoler-ance and type 2 diabetes amongst children, main-ly caused by overweight and obesity.

Proportionately very little money is spent on pre-vention of these diseases, which is one of the tar-gets for the agro-food industry (Figure 6).Emphasis should be placed on preventing thesediseases by delaying the initiation process; thatis, preventing rather than curing.

The rapidly increasing burden of chronic diseasesis a key determinant of global public health.Unhealthy diets, physical inactivity and smoking

are confirmed risk factors for chronic diseases.Prevention of disease in large populations,through relatively small reductions in blood pres-sure and blood cholesterol can dramaticallyreduce health costs. For example, it has beendemonstrated that improved lifestyles can reducethe risk of diabetes by 58% over four years. Otherpopulation studies have shown that up to 80% ofcases of coronary heart disease and up to 90% ofcases of type 2 diabetes, could potentially beavoided through changing lifestyle factors, andthat about one-third of cancers could be avoidedby eating healthily, maintaining normal weightand regularly exercising (10).

Thus, the public health approach of primary pre-vention is considered to be the most cost-effec-tive, affordable and sustainable course of actionrequired to address the chronic disease epidem-ic worldwide and in Europe.

Figure 5. Healthy Ageing

Add life to years

Age

Wel

l-bei

ng /

appe

aran

ce

Figure 6. A schematic presentation ofimproving population health - Target areasof the food and pharma industries in public health

Unhealthy conditionsHealthy

Popu

latio

n nu

mbe

rs

Source: Green MR and van der Ouderaa F, Nature Pharmacogenomics, 2003

Target populationfor food industries

& public health care

Target popula-tion for pharma

industries

Diet-related diseases: the principle healthburden in Europe

It has been calculated that chronic diseases com-prise approximately 60% of the 56.5 million totalglobal deaths in 2001. Almost half of these areattributable to cardiovascular diseases; however,obesity and diabetes are also showing worryingincreases, not only because they already affect alarge proportion of the population but alsobecause they have now started to appear earlierin life. It has been projected that by 2020 chron-ic diseases will account for almost three-quartersof all deaths worldwide, and that the majority ofdeaths due to ischemic heart disease (71%),stroke (75%) and diabetes (70%) will occur indeveloping countries. On a global basis, 60% ofthe burden of chronic diseases will fall on devel-oping countries (10).

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Conservative estimates suggest that about onethird of cardiovascular diseases is related to inap-propriate nutrition, although the need for moreresearch is widely acknowledged. Cancer killsabout 1 million adults per year in the WHOEuropean Region. As with cardiovascular dis-eases, inappropriate diet causes about one thirdof all cancer deaths worldwide (5).

A preliminary analysis from the Swedish Instituteof Public Health suggests that 4.5% of disabilityadjusted life-years (DALYs) is lost as a directresult of poor nutrition in EU Member States,with an additional 3.7% and 1.4% due to obesi-ty and physical inactivity, respectively. The totalpercentage of DALYs lost related to poor nutritionand physical inactivity is therefore 9.6% (11).

Relationship with other key research areas

There is a need to develop food and nutritionpolicies, which protect and promote health andreduce the burden of food-related disease, whilecontributing to socio-economic development anda sustainable environment. Major objectives ofthe health sector are to promote health through awell-balanced diet, the avoidance of nutritionaldeficiencies and the control of food-borne dis-eases. A multisectoral approach, embracing agri-culture, the environment, the food and drinkindustry, transport, advertising and commerce is,therefore, essential to help position food andnutrition policy high on the political agenda.

Improvement in health should be an expectedoutcome from food and nutrition policies andshould contribute to the success and profitabilityof the relevant commercial sectors. Close collab-orations between those responsible for nutrition,food safety and food security will be necessary todevelop comprehensive, intersectoral policiesand effective concerted actions.

The exploitation of advanced, genomic technolo-gies is likely to have a significant role to play indelivering the objectives of this Platform.

The market for functional foods

Health aspects will have to be considered for allfoods, but there is a growing market for specific,new- and adapted-, common functional foods, forexample phytosterol-containing food products.For example, in The Netherlands, approximately165 million euro is spent on this market annual-ly; a figure that is expected to double over thenext five years. Specifically, the global market forweight management products is growing signifi-cantly from about 32 billion $US in 2000 to 55billion $US in 2006. It is foreseen that the cur-rent niche-type market will expand substantiallyinto a market possessing a broader range of inno-vative health food products.

Food, nutrition and research

Market leaders in the international food and drinkindustries recognise the importance of improveddisease prevention, which would significantlyreduce the enormous burden that diseases placeon individuals and their families, the nationaland regional economies, and society at large, andthey are willing to invest in substantial long-termresearch efforts. They have also recognised thatcritical mass is a key issue in securing and thenmaintaining a leading role in global food andnutrition research.

Mapping the human genome and the establish-ment of a range of new tools within the geneticsand genomics research areas are providing thepotential to revolutionise our understanding of(mechanisms of) nutrition and well-being.

The consumer plays a central role and weshould, therefore, understand more fullyhow the healthy choice could be translatedinto the easy choice.

Research topics will include:

■ New and effective food-based strategies to opti-mise:

☞ Children’s growth and mental development;

☞ Lean body mass in adults, including mainte-nance of muscle function and prevention ofobesity;

☞ Immune function and mental performance;

☞ Healthy gastro-intestinal tract for improvedwell-being and resistance to diseases;

☞ Basis of key strategic research areas in foodand health: biomarker discovery and valida-tion (epidemiology; systems biology/nutrige-nomics; intervention trials).

■ New and effective food-based strategies for reduc-ing the risk of diet-related diseases, such as obesi-ty, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, arthri-tis, osteoporosis and cancer.

■ The influence of diet on the ageing process, e.g.energy intake.

4.2 Food quality and manufacturing

The vision of the ETP Food for Life is that new innovative manufacturing technologies,addressing consumer expectations for high quality, novel or modified products withimproved and attractive taste and convenience characteristics will enhance the com-petitiveness of the European food sector and contribute to the welfare and well-beingof European consumers. Significant and sustained R&D investment will be necessary

to maintain a global and competitive agro-food complex, maximise the market shareof high-quality European products and ensure a leading market position with net trade

surpluses and increased employment.

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‘Food Quality and Manufacturing’ has twoaims:

■ To enhance, or at least maintain, the quality ofEuropean food products at a high level throughintelligent solutions, and thereby increase theirattractiveness to the consumer relative to prod-ucts from other parts of the world, especiallythe US and Asia. This will stimulate internalgrowth of the European market.

■ To manufacture European products possessingglobal attractiveness. Prices for agriculturalproduce from Asia and South America willdrop, while overall consumption will increaseworldwide. Hence, in addition to a sustainedattention to competitive low cost processing,European food producers and manufacturerswill need to find ways to add value to theirproducts. The rich and diverse European cui-sine allied to the leading position of Europeanmanufacturers of novel processing technologysectors offers obvious opportunities to increasethe global competitiveness.

Understanding of the concept ‘Food Quality’ inEurope has changed significantly over the years.From the basic availability of food, via uniformi-ty, food safety, and production circumstances,food is now increasingly associated with enjoy-ment, health and anticipated well-being.Changes in society and demographic develop-ment (increased participation of women in theworkforce, smaller families, increased house-holds, ageing society and increases in proportionand integration of ethnic groups in many EUMember States) have all impacted significantlyon the ways in which food is currently preparedand where it is consumed.

In addition to the importance of the healtheffects of food, taste remains a crucial factor insecuring the consumer’s preference and ensuringrepeat purchases. Moreover, taste is an enablerthat facilitates the intake of healthy products.Convenience is another obvious factor that playsan important role; indeed this characteristic wasassociated with the highest growth rate in inno-vation in 2004. Grazing, eating on the move,ease of container-opening for children and theelderly are other examples of demands thatincrease the enjoyment of food. Food is increas-ingly consumed away from home, in canteens,catering establishments and restaurants.Nevertheless, an EU survey found that 25-33%of consumers consider that the quality of foodproducts has deteriorated over time (12).

Changes in eating habits in conjunction with aclear demand for improved quality food createopportunities for primary producers to add valueto their produce and for the food processingindustry to develop new and personalised foods.Diversity will be of key importance for future foodproduction and product developments; the latterby itself will be insufficient to create the requiredinnovations. Increased R&D investments are nec-essary to develop new process equipment, pro-cessing lines or distributed manufacturing sys-tems.

Food Safety


Food Quality &

Manufacturing

Food &

Health

Food &

Consumer



Technology Transfer

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On the one hand, exporting traditional, regionalproducts from the rich and diverse European cui-sine, will be enhanced and supported throughlonger shelf life, obtained with mild preservationtechnologies provided by the leading Europeanequipment manufacturers. On the other hand,new products will appear on the market based onnovel ingredients and processes. New (natural)ingredients could be produced by improved, mildseparation technologies, or by novel bioprocess-ing schemes. New structures and textures will beproduced as a consequence of developments inmicro- and nano-technology.

A challenge for the European food and drinkindustry over the next one to two decades is howto provide the consumer with the type of foodthat he/she likes at the right time and in the rightplace. Innovative processes, value-added prod-ucts, new marketing concepts, novel ways of sell-ing products and novel ways for the production-and supply chain to co-operate to create productstargeted at consumer needs should ensure thatthe consumer is provided with safe products pos-sessing the required taste characteristics and atmaximum convenience - and always at an accept-able price. Modern technology can make animportant difference in increasing the accessibil-ity of food, both in terms of its availability and itsaffordability.


Perception of taste

■ Technologies to drastically reduce sugar, salt andfat levels in food products without compromisingsensory properties.

■ Understanding the dynamics of sensory perceptionfrom receptor to brain, including cross modal inter-actions of the senses, flavour release and structurebreakdown.

■ Technologies for new products and meal conceptswith attractive sensory characteristics for specificgroups such as children and the elderly.

■ Technologies to create novel, exciting food producttextures based on the concept of dynamic structur-ing and breakdown.

Manufacturing

■ Technologies for minimising by-products and wasteproduction.

■ Rapid analytical on-line methods to measurerequired properties of supplied raw materials.

■ Sustained attention to competitive low cost pro-cessing.

■ Innovation in and industrialisation of regional gas-tronomy.

■ Technologies for flexible packaging process systemsand active, intelligent and convenient packagingsystems.

■ Integrated production and process design.

■ Technologies for flexible, distributed and minia-turised processing systems to cope with personaldemands as well as hygienic and minimal process-ing systems for optimal quality.

■ Bioprocessing and improved separation technolo-gies for novel ingredients.

■ Technologies for convenience foods: easy to handle,time saving, ready-to-eat and heat-to-eat.

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4.3 Food and consumer

The challenge for the ETP Food for Life is to more fully understand consumer foodchoice behaviour and to stimulate the consumers’ selection of foods in order toarrive at a healthy diet (‘to make the healthy choice the easy choice’), and to create

trust and confidence in food production, service development and consumption of(novel) foods.

Consumers play a central role in the EuropeanTechnology Platform Food for Life and their inter-ests should be reflected across all the researchsub-Platforms. Food and drinks brings pleasureto living and, if consumed in the right amountsand proportions, they should make a major con-tribution to the well-being and healthy ageing ofEuropean citizens. Consumer confidence in foodsand drinks is also of paramount importance andis related to product safety, product supply andnew technology. The logic and understanding ofconsumers may differ considerably from that ofexperts and when ignored this discrepancy maylead to misperception, misunderstanding andultimately distrust and thereby hamper the effec-tive communication to realise desired behaviour-al changes.

Improvements in the health of European con-sumers, including ethnic and immigrant popula-tions and other specific target groups (such aschildren, elderly and the disadvantaged), canonly be realised through changes in consumers’food choice and dietary habits, which takeaccount of current and emerging lifestyle choic-es. Understanding and appreciation of these cul-tural and lifestyle factors may further enhancethe effectiveness of the European food and drinkindustry.

‘Food and consumer’ has the aim to develop fun-damental understanding of consumer food choicebehaviour in an actionable format to includeprogress made in nutritional sciences, food qual-ity and food technology. More specifically thisresearch programme aims to:

■ Understand the consumer food-related percep-tion process and particularly where discrepan-cies occur between consumers and expertswhich may lead to lack of confidence;

■ Understand consumer food choice processesand the underlying fundamental processes;

■ Understand the process of behavioural changeand the key factors that drive, facilitate andinhibit such change in a more healthy and sus-tainable direction; and

■ Understand fundamental food values, food cul-tures and eating habits with their diversity anddynamics across Europe.

Food Safety


Food Quality &

Manufacturing

Food &

Health

Food &

Consumer



Technology Transfer

24


Key elements that must be addressed include:

■ Consumer priorities for and trade-offs betweenvarious food benefits such as taste, conven-ience, health, sustainability, price and ethicsas well as the dynamics in consumer benefitsneeds (hypes and trends);

■ In-depth analysis of specific target groups suchas children, elderly, ethnic and disadvantagedconsumers together with appropriate method-ologies and intervention tools for these targetgroups;

■ Consumer-focussed communication strategieson the benefits, risks, safety, and healthiness ofspecific dietary choices, as well as on the ori-gin of foods;

■ Informed intervention strategies for behaviour-al changes towards more healthy and sustain-able food choices;

■ Effective consumer-focussed communicationstrategies to promote food choices for specifictarget groups (e.g. children, less-educated con-sumers, elderly); potentially evolving into ahealth marketing curriculum;

■ Consumer-focussed information and labellingschemes to enhance food choices;

■ Effective (school) education programmes toenhance knowledge about and motivation forfood choices;

■ Consumer trust and confidence in product ori-gin and product technology, and developing theunderpinning science base;

■ Consumer inputs into strategic developmentsin food technology and product development;

■ Consumer perceptions, attitudes, preferencesand behaviour towards new technologies (e.g.nanotechnology, genomics, etc.), specific pro-duction methods (e.g. animal welfare, localspecialties, organic and sustainable produc-tion) and dietary regimes (e.g. vegetarianism,dieting, etc.); and

■ Improved methodologies to incorporate con-sumer focus, involvement and alignment infood innovation (‘fork to farm’ approaches).


■ Understanding and predicting food selection for ahealthy diet, and stimulating a good habitual con-sumption of foods. This might include developingpersonalised information and products optimisingquality and consumer health and the prediction offuture trends at the global, EU, regional and locallevel.

■ The design and validation of new ways to effective-ly communicate and target information on healthydiets at various population groups with differentinformation needs, including minority ethnic popu-lations and those most at risk.

■ Mapping the dietary habits of ethnic and immigrantpopulations in Europe and effectively exploiting thisnew knowledge.

■ Mapping food culture in Europe and in the globalmarket.

■ Analysing the role of price versus other food bene-fits and how this differs between specific targetgroups (e.g. low income consumers).

■ Consumer-controlled product development; modelsand techniques for translating consumer informa-tion into sensory and non-sensory product specifi-cations.

■ Understanding the determinants of consumeracceptance of food technologies, and how thisvaries according to individual consumer benefits.Are new technologies the answer to the demandsand health requirements of consumers? What is thebest strategy for the food industry to adopt whenusing technology applied to product innovation?

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4.4 Food safety

The vision of the ETP Food for Life is to ensure the production of safe foods that con-sumers can trust.

Although our food is now safer than ever, con-sumer perception has shifted to a high level ofawareness and reduced certainty. In essence,decision-making for the consumer is based on‘food you can trust’. This relates to the elementsof honesty (“can I trust this company, brand ororigin?”), familiarity (“what does the labelmean?”), quality (“is it fresh?”), naturalness(“what was added?”) and food safety (“does thisfood not damage my health, now or in thefuture?”).

Food safety continues to be a priority issue forgovernment, industry, academia and the con-sumer. Safety scares and incidents relate to(micro)biological (e.g. Campylobacter, Listeria,noro-viruses, BSE), chemical (e.g. crop protec-tion agents, veterinary pharmaceuticals), physi-cal contamination and allergens. Food scaresmay relate to animal diseases that have no directrelation with food safety themselves (food andmouth disease, avian influenza). Food processingis now a global industry and, therefore, the con-sequences of contamination can be potentiallyvery widespread, causing harm to human healthand damage to the credibility of manufacturers,regulators, and ultimately to the reputation ofprocessed foods.

Consumers also desire natural, functional, nutri-tious foods that are unquestionably safe. Anapparent constraint here is that most preserva-tion and processing technologies used today alsocause loss of naturalness and nutritional value.The introduction to the market of alternative pro-cessing technologies or novel foods, requires con-sideration of possible consequences within thefood system. For instance, more minimallyprocessed foods will become available to complywith the consumer demand for more ‘fresh-like’convenient products but the risk of food spoilagecould increase.

Most of the novel processing technologies carrythe promise to deliver safe foods without sacrific-ing naturalness and nutritional benefits. It is tothe advantage of the consumer and the agro-foodindustry, therefore, to fully exploit these scientif-ic breakthroughs so that the safety and nutrition-al benefits of processed foods can be enhancedsignificantly. Proper validation of a range of alter-nate and novel technologies is, however, needed.Hazard analyses must consider all the intrinsic

and extrinsic conditions that influence chemicaland pathogenic contamination known to be asso-ciated with foods, ingredients or processes relat-ed to the novel food being introduced.

There have been some very significant scientificand technological advances that allow a betterunderstanding and prediction of the behaviour offood-borne micro-organisms, and to deliver safeprocesses that are milder. A variety of powerfultools, based on molecular biology and genomics,are available to characterize micro-organisms andalso to offer more rapid ways of detecting theseorganisms. This will provide new insights into thebasis of human disease, the source of pathogensin food and the capacity of pathogens to resiststress, survive and grow in diverse environments,and lead to new strategies to control and elimi-nate pathogenic bacteria from the food chain.

The micro-ecology of foods is itself a rapidlydeveloping field, which makes great use of mod-ern technologies to describe the complex interac-tions occurring in foods. The science base, whichthese studies represent, will be crucial in thesupport of risk assessment and risk managementtasks.

Understanding the established causes of bacteri-al food-poisoning will provide insight into micro-bial evolution and this insight will provide thetools to develop models for the prediction andcontainment of emerging causes of food-bornedisease for the future. These ‘systems’ approach-es promise to help us understand micro-organ-isms and their interactions more deeply than everbefore. Nonetheless there remains the need todevelop tools that will enable the rapid detectionof food pathogens in situ and that are capable ofbeing used on- or off-line within the time frameof a typical production run.

Safety, however, is not guaranteed only by ‘safe’product manufacture; the total chain has to betaken into account. Professional practitioners inthe food safety arena need to have the properdecision-making tools to develop the correct pro-cedures that ensure the safety of foods through-out ‘fork to farm’ (which can be translated into‘research to retail’). A systems approach ‘safetyby design’ (Figure 7) has to be taken into con-sideration, which relies heavily on risk assess-ment and risk management and tools for detec-

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Education and effective risk communication willbe necessary to provide consumers with a moreaccurate perception of food safety risks and toencourage behaviour modification, where need-ed. Food safety objectives will be defined perproduct (range) and new methods for risk assess-ment will provide information on the level of risk.The latter can be used to classify foods in safetyclasses and to label these accordingly.

Promoting research and knowledge developmentin this broad area should, therefore, be a signifi-cant objective of the food safety strategy. Thisthen allows the agro-food industry to develop theproper risk mitigation tools.


■ A ‘systems’ approach for improved food safety andreduced food spoilage, including the developmentof integrated processing and packaging solutions; aholistic approach of safety of cooked foods; under-standing shelf life.

■ Methods of quantitative risk assessment and pre-dictive modelling of safety and spoilage risks alongthe extended supply chain, including product andprocess design models, novel detection routinesand the impact of cold chain.

■ Reliable tracking and tracing systems to ensureproduct safety and guarantee product origin.

■ Epidemiology and surveillance – not only strength-en and broaden surveillance networks (e.g.,Enter.Net), but also develop scientific predictiveinsight into how pathogens survive and dissemi-nate.

■ Food-borne micro-organisms and their ecophysiolo-gy; community interactions, host-microbe- andfood-microbe interactions, pathogenicity and viru-lence mechanisms using functional genomics.

■ Viruses, parasites and emerging pathogens –molecular mechanisms of emergence.

■ New technologies – development and complete val-idation.

■ Research on consumer perception of food safety.

■ Reduction and eventual elimination of all animaltesting in food safety.

■ Cleanroom technology.

■ Holistic approach to the relation between process-ing and food safety, including cooking.

Figure 7. Systems approach: safety design

Raw

Mat

eria

ls

“Saf

ety

Des

ign”

Consumer Use

Supply Chain

Product Manufacture

Process Design

Product Design

Safe Use

Safe Distribution

Safe Product

Safe Process

Safe Formulation

tion and prediction. These tools are based on theassessment of the real risks in the food chain.Superior scientific and technological knowledgemakes such risk assessments effective, robustand ‘real-world’.

Quantitative risk assessment will consolidate itsrole as the cornerstone of how society responds toenvironmental (including food) hazards. Eventhough full quantitative risk assessments willremain in the domain of EU-wide, official agen-cies (such as EFSA), the tools which are beingperfected within this discipline (e.g. predictivemodels) will continue to represent importantcompetitive instruments, underpinning the inno-vation process in the development of novel prod-ucts. Research in this area will be important bothto develop the science further and to make thesetools more widely available within the food indus-try. The tools and methods which are developedshould be adapted to the complexity with whichfoods are currently being viewed; for example,undertaking risk/benefit assessment, rather thanjust risk assessment and considering hazards incombination rather than separately.

The safety of food and food products, as well astheir ingredients, is currently supported by datagenerated from animal tests; approaches that arethe focus of growing public disquiet and concern.Recent advances in gene technology supportedby mathematical sciences and computer technol-ogy have resulted in the rapid development ofgenomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics andproteomics. This situation, together with a sys-tems approach might contribute to addressingthe consumer concerns for a drastic reduction inthe number of animals used. It is reasonable toassume that these new developments and appli-cations will serve to meet the demands andexpectations of society and also improve thequality of overall risk/benefit assessment.However, it will be vital for society to be informedabout these changing scenarios.

}

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4.5 Sustainable food production

The vision of the ETP Food for Life is to create greater synergy between economicgrowth, environmental protection and fair-minded social conditions in order toimprove welfare and well-being of the European citizen. Benefiting all in Europe, a

sustainable agriculture and food production is a worldwide challenge and regardsfood chains as a whole.

Sustainable development, development thatmeets the needs of the present without compro-mising those of future generations, is a centralobjective of the European Commission, as con-firmed by the Treaties of Amsterdam and Niceand emphasised at the Gothenburg Council.

Although much effort has already been spent inthe Western world towards creating sustainableproduction systems, the European agro-foodindustry has a global responsibility, since itsresources are not limited to those from Europe.The World Summit on Sustainable Developmentin Johannesburg in 2002 established a ten-yearframework of programmes for sustainable produc-tion and consumption patterns and this ETP willalso support global commitment and partnership.

Close links will be established with otherPlatforms and trans- and international activitiesso that good practice may be captured andencouraged, and that the food chain will be rep-resented in dialogue, debate and action promot-ed through other channels. For instance, leadingmembers of the European industry have joinedforces to set up the international SustainableAgriculture Initiative Platform (SAI Platform) topromote and develop sustainable agriculture andcommunicate its benefits worldwide. The ideas ofthe SAI Platform will have a significant input intothe development of this ETP:

■ Knowledge building and management usingdatabases on sustainable agriculture;

■ Supporting the implementation of sustainableagriculture practices including the position ofsmall growers in developing countries;

■ Raising awareness by public relations; and

■ Involvement of different stakeholders with aninterest in the food chain.

Although sustainable agriculture and food produc-tion cannot be restricted to a European level, theETP will emphasize activities to promote the com-petitiveness of the European agro-food industry:

■ To create the necessary synergy between eco-nomic growth, environmental protection andfair-minded social conditions, effective actionsmust be taken to remove economic, regulatoryand technological obstacles. Whilst the dis-mantling of regulatory barriers is beyond thescope of this Platform, its stakeholders are fullycommitted to this end and will work with othersto achieve this.

Figure 8. Sustainable food productionalong the food chain

Sustainable food production

Integrated chain management to achieveSustainable food production

Agronomy climate / Environment

Post-harvesttreatments

Processing Preparation

ECOSYSTEMS

BreedingGM

Seed Crop Product Ingestion

Physiological effects

Source: K. Waldron, IFR, UK, 2004

Within this ETP, sustainable agriculture and foodproduction, like food safety and food chain man-agement, is seen as underpinning all issuesaddressed within the Food and Health, and FoodQuality and Manufacturing pillars. Sustainablefood production includes food chains as a whole:the suppliers of inputs via primary producers,processors, traders, retailers and the consumer.Climate change, nature and biodiversity, healthand quality of life and management of both nat-ural resources and waste streams are all areas inwhich particular attention needs to be focussedin future years (13). Cross-functional co-opera-tions between industrial sectors outside the agro-food industry will increase. The objectives of theEnvironmental Technologies Action Plan (ETAP)will, therefore, be of central importance in thedevelopment and implementation of the ETP.

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Food Quality &

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Technology Transfer

In keeping with the strategic thinking behindETPs, education, training and communicationwill be pivotal in capturing the interest and sup-port of stakeholders, thereby determining theultimate impact of this Platform. Amongst thevarious avenues to be exploited are:

■ Open discussions, stimulating the exchange ofviews and ideas on critical issues;

■ Fora for scientists and the media (to facilitateinteractions and promote mutual understand-ing);

■ Activities targeted toward farmers, food proces-sors and retailers, regulators, policy makers andopinion formers; and

■ Teaching and education, in the broadest sense.

Constructive feedback from these and otheractivities will be used to further develop thePlatform.

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■ In the development of new, tasteful and con-venient products it will be important to exploitnovel processing technologies whose use ismore environmentally-friendly than currentalternatives. These encompass technologiesand processes to manage pollution (e.g. air pol-lution control, waste management), productsand processes that are less-polluting and less-resource intensive, and ways to manageresources more efficiently (e.g. reduced watersupply, energy-saving technologies). In many ofthese areas, European industry stands at theforefront of developments and their applicationand exploitation will offer competitive advan-tages for products and services, significantmarket growth and opportunities to furtherstrengthen the European R&D base.

■ Social science research will explore how agro-nomic, financial and social policies and prac-tices affect the sustainability of the food chain,and how individual actors and groups (includ-ing the stakeholder community) make deci-sions, exercise power and respond to change.Studies and analyses will offer solutions tochallenges and will contribute to formulatingtheories. Outputs will be targeted at local,regional, national and European level.

■ To achieve a sustainable balance between pro-tecting ecosystems and meeting human needs,to ensure that the primary production- and foodindustries continue to motor the European andglobal economy and to make even more signif-icant contributions to health and the country-side in Europe, research will be allied to thedevelopment of new tools, models and solu-tions for improved food chain managementpractices. This includes a stronger promotion ofthe implementation of environmental manage-ment systems all over the food chain.


■ Compilation of new modelling tools and indicatorsfor operational processes in the agro-food industryin Europe.

■ Description of various scenarios depending onworldwide changes in environment, economy andsociety.

■ Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of food chain(s) to preventand reduce waste streams, decrease energy andwater use and apply chemicals appropriately andjudiciously.

■ Development of value-added technologies to facili-tate innovations of the EU agro-food industry infood chains (animal/meat and fish; plant/crops;microbiological).

■ Advancement of farming technologies according toa diversity of farm management systems (integrat-ed and organic farming).

■ Knowledge management to identify and involvestakeholders, promote and encourage food chainsustainable development across Europe, with a par-ticular focus on new Member States and CandidateCountries.

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4.6 Food chain management

The vision of the ETP Food for Life is to achieve a competitive high level of food valuechain performance through implementation of new technologies and business practicesthat address all aspects of economic efficiency, marketing and environmental control.

Complex food value chains encompass all partic-ipants and processes involved in food productionfrom the suppliers of inputs via primary produc-ers, processors, retailers and the consumer(Figure 9). The understanding of the complexnature of the food world will be based on theknow-how of networks rather than simply chains.The key ‘drivers’ for the effective management offood value chains are:

■ Safety: overall legal framework, quality and riskmanagement, traceability, brand protection andliability;

■ Quality: taste, appearance, freedom fromresidues, nutritional characteristics, reputa-tion, brand awareness and sustainable foodproduction; and

■ Efficiency: consistency, flexibility, lean produc-tion, specification, continuous supply, high-vol-ume and low-cost production.

These issues affect players involved at all stagesin food value chains. The aim of the future agro-food industry will be to deal with the differentinterests of the individual market players inrespect of environmental-, ethical- and economi-cal affairs, and to examine how best to determineoutcomes that will maximise benefits to con-sumers whilst also providing benefits to produc-

ers. Conflicts associated with competition prac-tices, market dynamics and legal regulation needto be resolved together with those resulting fromthe demands of society and public perception.

The shift of power towards large manufacturersand retailers requires specific considerations onthe future role of SMEs and farmers. Since a con-stant increase of the global trade of food is fore-seen, the mechanisms that cross cultures andeconomic development zones must be developed,understood and implemented.

The main future challenge will be to achieve ahigh level of transparency between the individualproduction stages and to share benefits and risksalong the value chain; in this manner sustainablegrowth in Europe will be created. The implemen-tation of such highly-efficient and cost-effectivefood quality controls can only be guaranteed bycontinuous advancement of increasingly sophisti-cated and co-ordinated systems of food chainmanagement systems including quality-, HACCP-and environmental management and control.Finally, value chain co-ordination has to result inan extra value creation beyond the basic needs offood safety and food quality. The cost/benefitconsiderations of single companies must beexpanded to competing chains.

Figure 9. The complexity of food chains

ConsumerFood manufacturerFood systems

supplierApplied food technology

Third party foodingredient supplier

Food premixer

Food service

Food retailer

Animal geneticsprovider

Food industry co-products

Farm informationmanagement

Financial service /risk management

High value foodingredient / Traits

(plant biotech based)

Feed manufacturer

Feed supplementsupplier

Third party supplementsupplier

Mineralsupplier

Logisticsprovider

AgChem pro-ducer

Seed provider

Trait provider

Grain merchant

Farmer

Third party premixer/basemixer

Feed premixer /basemixer

Applied nutritionknowledge

MME producer /processor

Slaughter / processor

MME integrator

Oilseed crusher

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Food Quality &

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Consumer



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Such systems are based on technical tools andare derived from business processes and experi-ence. As a consequence, individual companieswill change internal processes and enter into co-operations across company borders with suppli-ers, customers and, in non-competitive areas,competitors. The development and implementa-tion of these new business processes will requiresupport from various science-based disciplinesincluding economics, informatics and informa-tion technology, as well as involving inputs fromthe social and life science disciplines. The struc-tured and focussed support afforded for suchinteractions by the ETP will stimulate innovativesolutions. Due to the structure of the Europeanagro-food industry, specific efforts are needed totransfer results from R&D to SMEs.

To define successfully fields of research, a deepunderstanding of consumers' and citizens'demands and needs should be developed. Here,policy makers and companies should be in aposition to distinguish between the roles of con-sumer organisation and the behaviour of the con-sumer at the point of sale.

European leadership in both generic and appliedinformation- and communication technologiesneeds to be developed and exploited in foodchains and networks.

Key elements that must be addressed include:

■ Increasing demands from consumers for modi-fied innovative products and services, e.g., e-commerce;

■ Increasing demand for network activity (inter-dependence and interplay of food chain organ-isation, institutional arrangements and technol-ogy);

■ Influence of information- and communicationtechnologies on inter-company transaction pro-cessing and logistics;

■ Transparency of food production and risk man-agement: new organisational and technicalmechanisms for feedback, intensified commu-nication, systems of late conversion, trackingand tracing systems;

■ Transition from economies of scale toeconomies of scope for food-producing industryand retail sectors;

■ Integration of food production managementsystems; and

■ Worldwide demand for effective food chainmanagement in respect of responsiveness,process- and product innovation and capturingof side effects (e.g. social responsibilities).


■ Technical sciences: early and effective implementa-tion of new generation of information- and commu-nication technologies and data handling within theagro-food sector and adoption of new generationtools relating to production-, trade-, retail- andconsumer issues.

■ Business administration: business organisation,quality-, risk- and innovation management to co-ordinate intra- and inter-organisational relation-ships, marketing aspects.

■ Institutional and industrial economics.

■ Industrial engineering and production manage-ment.

■ Social sciences: social aspects of trans-nationalnetworking activity, communication and organisa-tion within value-added chains, supporting forcomplex problem solving in scientific, societal,agro-food industrial and business environments.

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4.7 Communication, training and technology transfer

The impact of the ETP Food for Life will, to a large degree, depend on the effectiveness of thecommunication and training strategies developed and exploited within its programme,especially those directed toward improving knowledge and technology transfer. Best prac-tice in communication and the exploitation of innovative communication and training tech-niques will be promoted and supported throughout the Platform. Transfer of technology to

industry, and to the SMEs sector in particular, is the driver for innovation and is a key focusfor improvement. Links with other ETPs and trans-national networks will enable best prac-

tices relevant to this sub-Platform to be identified and rapidly and efficiently implemented.

Effective communication, training and technolo-gy transfer are common elements of Research,Education and Innovation, the three componentsof the ‘Triangle of Knowledge’ recently highlight-ed by the European Commission (4).

Within the overall context of this ETP, communi-cation is important among its sub-Platforms, with-in the management and administration structuresand with and between individual stakeholderscommunities. Training will be needed to stimulateentrepreneurial ethos, build confidence and expe-rience and create future generations of skilled andflexible scientists and technologists. Transfer oftechnology and knowledge are necessary tools forestablishing the link between research results andtheir application. A relationship of trust andmutual confidence between individuals andorganisations is a prerequisite for successful tech-nology transfer. The structure of the ETP will serveto faciliate the development of such relationships.

Transfer of knowledge is not only realised indevelopment of products and processes, but alsothrough training and education of personnel.Highly-sophisticated food production processesrequire well-trained staff. The gap betweenresearch and its application, currently wider inEurope than for its key global competitors, mustbe narrowed via the exploitation of educationalprogrammes that introduce new students andfood production personnel to the most recentdevelopments and techniques. Taken as a wholethe interacting activities of this sub-Platform willcontribute directly to delivery of the aims of theRevised Lisbon Council, the Innovation WhitePaper, the European Research Area and FrameworkProgramme 7.

Communication

In addition to being a key requirement of effectivemanagement and administration for the Platform,communication [a two-way process] is importantto optimise interactions between individual sub-Platforms, to enable stakeholders to gain the max-imum benefit from ongoing activities and toensure that policymakers, opinion formers and the

general public are regularly updated on issues rel-evant to the agro-food industry. For this reason thePlatform will organise regular seminars and meet-ings, will incorporate best practices in communi-cation and will include the scientific media, andespecially food writers, in its activities.

It is essential to understand that the effectivecommunication of food-related issues dependson designing different patterns of communicationaimed at capturing the diverse sensitivities andpriorities of stakeholders involved in the knowl-edge process. Validated strategies will be adopt-ed to ensure optimal impact across the membersof the food chain and the general public. The firstgroup includes companies and retailers, and thesecond, consumers (who may be further subdi-vided according to background, education, ageand ethnicity) and opinion formers.

There is also a need for industry to improve itscommunication capabilities, for example byincreasing the quality of information directedtowards the consumer, ensuring that it is correct-ly targeted and that it addresses the consumers’needs and expectations.

The long-term success of the European agro-foodsector will depend on skilled and flexible scien-tists and technologists of both genders; thePlatform must:

■ Publicise the benefits of a long-term and chal-lenging career in this sector;

■ Promote Europe as the foremost region for suchcareer development; and

■ Engage with other actors to raise public aware-ness of the positive role that science and tech-nology plays in supporting and developing asustainable agro-food industry, that createsemployment and promotes health and well-being of consumers.

Training

All aspects of the programme of this ETP willinvolve training and funding schemes to supportsuch activities will be sought at both national and

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European level. The active involvement in thisPlatform of professional organisations will ensurethat an effective exchange of knowledge and expe-rience between academic organisations and indus-try will be included. The very high proportion ofSMEs active in the agro-food chain demonstratesthat technology transfer to this sector is particular-ly important; this is even more so within the newMember States where there is a particularly widegap between researchers and companies.

Representatives from food industry networks andfrom single companies need to work together todevelop strategies to reduce the increasing gapbetween countries and food sectors that exploitinnovation and those that do not. One solutioncould be the creation, at national and Europeanlevel, of ‘techno-mediators’ - technicans whohave been trained to train other technicians; inthis manner best practice of innovation aware-ness could be efficiently promoted. A more for-malised commitment by the food sector to thetraining of trainers could be introduced by creat-ing a ‘European Academy’ of skills and compe-tences in food technology improvement andtransfer, which might include on-job training andhave recognition by the European Union.

Technology transfer

The transfer of information and results on (inno-vative) technologies to the agro-food industryencounters many human and technologicalobstacles; together these contribute to the gener-ally slow pace at which innovation is introducedinto processing plants. Obstacles to innovationare particularly significant for SMEs, especiallythose in new Member States, because of the:

■ General resistance to take up new methods ofwork and innovation;

■ Failure of institutional mechanisms to effec-tively disseminate knowledge and to inform keyindustrial personnel of newly available tech-nologies and innovations;

■ Lack of knowledge on how best to transferknowledge developed in the laboratories of R&Dorganisations, and scale up processes that weredeveloped and tested in the laboratory; and

■ Lack of time and professional knowledge toread and understand scientific literature.

National players experienced in knowledge trans-fer will be invaluable partners in this EuropeanTechnology Platform to ensure that the flow ofknowledge is both rapid and efficient. National orregional knowledge transfer platforms have beenestablished in a number of EU Member Statesand experience and best practice from these, andother, programmes will be sought and exploited.However, since technology transfer (and associat-

ed entrepreneurial activity) in Europe lags behindthat of the USA and the Pacific Rim, particularattention will be paid to promoting and encour-aging these practices.

Especial hurdles that need to be addressed with-in new Member States, Candidate and AccessionCountries include:

■ A significantly lower national investment in agro-food research;

■ A reduced willingness of the agro-food industryto invest in and implement research because oflimited financial- and human resource;

■ The one-way mobility of R&D staff away fromnew Member States, due to salary differencesand lack of career opportunities; and

■ Barriers that inhibit researchers from establish-ing effective and sustainable links with manu-facturers, a situation that exists across Europe.

Activities will include:

■ Providing training and dissemination services to awide range of stakeholders in the agro-food sector.

■ Developing an effective dialogue with society.

■ Disseminating new findings and research results to abroad and interested public.

■ Identifying and transferring relevant best practices atall levels.

■ Stimulating and promoting entrepreneurial activities.

■ Identifying appropriate measures and mechanismsfor training, including on the job options.

■ Complementing and supporting existing channels,identifying requirements that are common to otherindustry sectors and supporting cost-effective jointactivities.

■ Integrating R&D and industrial partners in trainingand technology transfer, thus connecting science toindustry and emphasising the importance of all part-ners in the food innovation chain.

■ Developing new, simple methods for structuring exist-ing fragmented information at SMEs level and makingit available and easily understandable for factory per-sonnel to improve knowledge management.

■ Strengthening and improving schemes to supporttrans-sectorial mobility of R&D staff with specialattention for mobility involving new Member States.

■ Establishing associations of agro-food manufacturersand R&D organisations.

■ Promoting the benefits of collective research fundedby groups of SMEs especially in new Member States.

■ Establishing databases for communication, trainingand technology transfer.

■ Network maintenance.

■ Personnal transfer.

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Innovation within the production chain can beachieved either within an organisation or within acollection of organisations in concert with net-work organisations, such as research institutes,equipment manufacturers, governments, NGOs,and financial organisations. Whereas innovationswithin a company usually represent incrementalimprovements, approaches involving differentorganisations are called system innovations andusually, but not inevitably, involve large stepchanges. Since the agro-food industry in Europeis fragmented, effective and efficient achieve-ment through large step innovations will requirethe formation of new networks.

In order to be able to achieve the visiondescribed here, clusters and networks within theagro-food industry and with the health and tech-nology sectors (each of which commits up to tentimes greater expenditure in R&D) must be built.Only then can it be expected that the successrate of European innovations can be accelerated.

Additionally, the benefit from R&D investmentswill be optimised if the knowledge chain is intact(i.e. not fragmented) and multidisciplinary.Hence, the R&D chain from basic research viaapplied research and development to innovativeproduct exploitations should be addressed andreorganised at a European level in order to pro-vide improved support to national and regionalindustry. Food innovation research infrastructures(public/private partnerships) need to be createdin various EU Member States or across borderseach in response to their own specific focus, con-sumer demand and market opportunity. AEuropean Strategic Research Public/PrivateCentre should be established to support innova-tion and link-up with other sectors (e.g. pharma).

In the earlier sections of this document, for clar-ity of presentation the specific research topicswere presented as separate topics. To fully reachthe goals of the European Technology Platform itwill be necessary to effectively integrate these

4.8 Horizontal issues

4.8.1 Integrating activities: clustering and networking.

topics. For example, in order for a large companyor chain of food-producing companies to delivernutritional and other life-style benefits to theEuropean citizen through the provision of high-quality foods produced in a fully sustainablemanner, a diverse range of expertise needs to beintegrated. These might include consumer-drivenresearch and design, innovative manufacturingtechnologies, health, medical and nutritional sci-ences related to life-style related diseases, sus-tainability in both food and non-food chains (link-ing the current FP6 Thematic Priorities FoodQuality and Safety and Sustainability).

Activities will include:

■ Clustering and networking with other initiatives:platforms; networks; and projects. Building net-works with the health and technology sectors andoptimising clustering in the knowledge and innova-tion chain.

■ Providing a network for informing food-related poli-cy makers in industry and at regional, national andEU level.

■ Establishing a horizontal link between thematicareas.

■ Accessing (venture) capital: especially relevant forstart-ups and SMEs.

■ Interacting with financial institutions and insur-ance companies.

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Unlike some other sectors (for example, environ-ment, transport, aerospace) the European agro-food chain currently does not have the necessarymedium- or long-term scenarios against which toplan its strategy. Such information is crucial ininforming stakeholder debate and developing thedecision-making process in research, social andeconomic contexts.

Several scenarios are presented below and it canbe seen that their outcomes would not only haveenormous impact on the viability of Europe’sagro-food industries and the quality of life of itscitizens, but equally important impact on widerareas of European policy (environment, health,transport, economic growth and prosperity,employment patterns, competitiveness andtrade).

The modelling of scenarios representing theextreme and intermediate positions requiresexpertise not present within the food chain atpresent. It is proposed to carry out appropriatescenario studies, with the co-operation of indi-vidual modellers as well as the JRC Institute forProspective Studies in Seville, and of organisa-tions and individuals having relevant data.

Food and health

■ What would be the cost (in its broadest sense)to the sector and beyond of compliance with allcurrent and future policies and advice, e.g. inrespect of health? As an example, if Europecomplied with nutritional advice to eat ‘5 por-tions of fruit and vegetables a day’ this wouldreduce diet-related illness, health-associatedcosts, enhance the quality of life of the work-force, etc. But if all consumers were eating thisbulk, what would they not be eating as a con-sequence (and what would this mean for sub-sectors of the agro-food industry)?

■ What would be the cost to the sector andbeyond of complete ignorance of all currentpolicies and advice?

■ Developing research tools to assess the impacton nutrient intake of advice and regulatorychanges regarding health and nutrition infor-mation. For example the impact on micronutri-ent intake in the context of actual or potentialdeficiencies.

■ What would be the effect on the food supplychain of replacing energy-rich foods with low-energy alternatives?

Food quality and manufacturing

■ What would be the cost of moving towards adiet comprising (sustainable-desirable) primaryproducts or minimally-processed produce, or oflocally-produced produce? For instance, theGeneral Food Law may have an effect on localproduction. Not only on availability, but also onsocio-economic aspects.

■ What would be the cost/benefit of movingtowards a more liberalised raw materials globalmarket?

Sustainable food production

■ What transitions are needed in the differentsectors of the food chain to transform it to amore sustainable European food productionsystem?

■ What would be the effect on the food supplychain of achieving 50% overall production oforganic foods by 2020?

■ What would be the economic, social and likelyhealth impact of implementing an environmen-tally-friendly and good animal welfare policy ofmeat and dairy product production?

4.8.2 Scenario studies

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5. Platform organisation

Figure 10. A proposed organisational structure for the European Technology Platform Foodfor Life

MemberStates’MirrorGroup

Board

Operational Committee

PlatformSecretariatHorizontal Issues Group

Communication, Training & Technology Transfer

Food & Health

Food Quality &

Manu-facturing

Food &Consumer

Food Safety

SustainableFood

Production

Food Chain

Management

A proposed organisation of the Platform is out-lined below. The overall aim of the structure is aflexible management that will maximise theimpact of the various activities described withinthe Strategic Research Agenda and

Implementation Plan. The details of the manage-ment and administrative structure will be devel-oped following the formal launch of the Platform.

36

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(3) CEC. Communication from the Commission. Science andtechnology, the key to Europe’s future – Guidelines forfuture European Union policy to support research.Brussels, 16.6.2004.

(4) EC. On the European Community 7th ResearchFramework Programme 2007-2013. Brussels, April 6,2005.

(5) Food and Health in Europe: a new basis for action. WHORegional Publications, European Series, No. 96, 2004.

(6) Campion EW. Aging better. NEJM 1998;338:1064-1066.

(7) BEUC Consensus workshops, Project QLK1-CT-2001-30067, January 2004.

(8) Opportunity for all in a world of change, A White Paperon Enterprise, Skills and Innovation. UK, 1995.

(9) OECD Science, Technology and Industry Outlook, OECD,2002.

(10) WHO/FAO Expert Consultation, Diet, nutrition and theprevention of chronic diseases, WHO Technical ReportSeries, No. 916, WHO: Geneva, 2003.

(11) Determinants of the burden of disease in the EuropeanUnion. National Institute of Public Health: Stockholm,1997.

(12) Poppe C, Kjærnes U. Trust in food in Europe – a com-parative analysis. Oslo, Norway: National Institute forConsumer Research, 2003. Professional Report No. 5,FP6 project ‘Consumer trust in food’ (EC-Contract No.QLK1-CT-2001-00291).

(13) Commission of the European Communities.Communication from the Commission to the Counciland the European Parliament. Stimulating Technologiesfor Sustainable Development: An EnvironmentalTechnologies Action Plan for the European Union.Brussels, 28 January, COM(2004) 38 final.

Endnotes

1. The European Commission has recognised the signifi-cance of the situation and recently launched the EUPlatform on Diet, Physical Activity and Health: a commit-tee of experts on nutrition and physical activity chargedwith advising the Commission on preparing a broadly-based strategy to support national and local efforts toconfront this challenge.

2. This Vision for the ETP on Food for Life is fully consistentwith the Building of a Knowledge-based Bio-economy,included in the European Commission’s Working Paper onFP7, to be achieved by “bringing together science, indus-try and other stakeholders, to exploit new and emergingresearch opportunities that address social and economicchallenges: the growing demand for safer, healthier andhigher quality food and for sustainable use and produc-tion of renewable bioresources; the increasing risk of epi-zootic and zoonotic diseases and food-related disorders;threats to the sustainability and security of agriculturaland fisheries production resulting in particular from cli-mate change; and the increasing demand for high quali-ty food, taking into account animal welfare and rural con-texts.”

3. Sustainable production technology is among the subjectsof the ETP Plants for the Future. Close co-operation withthe ETP Plants for the Future is envisaged.

4. The approach of this ETP assumes the ’fork-to-farm’ phi-losophy, meaning that the chain starts with the consumer.It is evident that innovation is required across the entirefood production chain. Thus, close contact will be estab-lished with other related ETPs, such as Plants for theFuture, and Global Animal Health, and other initiatives.


37

ACTIA, France

AGROCOMEX Sp., Poland

Agriconsulting Europe, Belgium

ANIA – Association Nationale des Industries Alimentaires, France

Bayer CropScience AG, Germany

BASF, Germany

BEUC – The European Consumers' Organisation, Belgium

Campden & Chorleywood Food Industry Development Institute, Hungary

CARTIF, Spain

CEBAS – CSIC, Spain

Central Food Research Institute, Hungary

CIAA – Confederation of the Food and Drink Industries, Belgium

CEFS – Comité Européen des Fabricants de Sucre, Belgium

Coca-Cola European Union Group

COPA-COGECA, Belgium

Danish Agricultural Council, Denmark

Danish Centre for Advanced Food Studies, Denmark

Danish Food and Drink Federation, Denmark

Danish Institute for Fisheries Research, Denmark

Danone

DTU – Technical University of Denmark, BioCentrum, Denmark

Dutch Federation for Nutrition, Food Science and Technology, The Netherlands

EAN International

ECAI

EDA – European Dairy Association, Belgium

ENEA, Italy

EPSO

ERA net SAFETY (SAFEFOODERA)

ESBUC, Portugal

ESF

ETP Plants for the Future

EUFIC – European Food Information Council, Belgium

EUROCOMMERCE

EuCheMS – European Association of Molecular and Chemical Sciences

European Commision, DG Enterprise, DG Research

European Meat Network

FEDERALIMENTARE – Italian Food and Drink Industries, Italy

FEI-BE/BLL

FEVIA – Belgian Federation of Food and Drink Industries, Belgium

FFDI – Czech Federation of Food and Drink Industries, Czech Republic

FHFI – Federation of Hungarian Food Industries, Hungary

FIAA and LVA (Food Technology Network), Austria

FIAB – Spanish Federation of Food and Drink Industries, Spain

FIPA – Federaçao das Industrias Protuguesas Agro-Alimentares, Portugal

Flanders Food, Belgium

FLEISHMAN-HILLARD, Belgium

FOODforce

Food Research Institute Bratislava, Slovakia

Food Standards Agency, UK

Food Testing Institute & Food Research Institute (LVA), Austria

FPME – European Food Processing Machinery Ind. Association

FRESHFEL EUROPE – European Fresh Produce Association

GIQS, Germany

IBA – Institute of Food Bioresources, Romania

Ille Café, France

ILSI Europe, Belgium

Initiativkreis Agrar- und Ernährungsforschung, Germany

INRA, France

INRAN, Italy

Institute of Food Bioresources, Romania

IFR – Institute of Food Research, UK

Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen – Institute of Nutritional Sciences, Germany

KEKI, Hungary

Kraft Foods

Leeds University – Department of Food Science, UK

National Institute for Research on Food and Nutrition, Italy

Nestlé

ORAFTI, Belgium

OFE, Hungary

Pfeifer & Langen, Germany

Polish National Committee of FIL/IDF, Poland

Polish Technology Platform Food, Poland

Progetto Europa Regions, Italy

Rabo Bank

Research Institute of Brewing and Malting, Czech Republic

RIKILT – Institute for Food Safety, The Netherlands

Royal AHOLD

Royal Society of Chemistry, UK

SAFE Consortium

SEAFOODplus (Integrated Project EC)

SETBIR, Turkey

SEVT – Federation of Hellenic Food Industries, Greece

SIK – The Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology, Sweden

SQTS – Swiss Quality Testing Services, Switzerland

SNF – Swedish Nutrition Foundation, Sweden

Swammerdam Institute for Life Science, The Netherlands

TATE & LYLE PLC, UK

Teagasc, The National Food Centre, Ireland

Technology Centre of Science Academy, Czech Republic

TNO Quality of Life, The Netherlands

TTZ, Germany

TUBITAK Marmara Research Center Food Institute, Turkey

UEAPME

Unilever, The Netherlands

University Gent, Belgium

University Maastricht, The Netherlands

University of Bonn, Germany

University of Warmia and Mazury, Poland

VÚZE – Research Institute of Agricultural Economy, Czech Republic

WCFS – Wageningen Centre for Food Sciences, The Netherlands

WUR – Wageningen University and Research Centre, The Netherlands.


Persons working with the following organisations, companies or institutes provided input tothe Vision Document:

38

European Technology Platform on Food for Life The vision for 2020 and beyond

Notes

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Published in June 2005

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