protein cluster shortening time-to-market · time-to-market . table of contents ... is expected to...

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World Food Center: New Dutch experience center

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Startup: Green Banana Food

Business opportunities Lebanon

Protein Cluster:shortening

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Accelerating the transition to sustainable proteins The global market for sustainable proteins is growing rapidly. In the Dutch Province of Gelder-land, academia, industry and government are combining to shorten time-to-market of innovations in this emerging field.

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Discover and share innovations Worldwide businesses are continually developing innovative solutions. WorldFoodInnovations.com features these innovations. In this edition we share a few impressive innovations from companies based in the Dutch province of Gelderland.

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Food Valley Society: new membersA global business network serving the agrifood, feed and horticultural industries that has its finger on the pulse of innovation: four new members explain why they joined the Food Valley Society.

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Start-up company: Green Banana FoodRich in fibers, high in protein, gluten free and totally delicious; this innovative, sustainably-produced pasta range has been developed by Sean Patrick, founder of Green Banana Food.

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Gelderland and China intensify their collaboration After opening a representative office in the southern province Fujian one year ago, Food Valley NL and Wageningen University & Research are now closely involved in an ambitious project for large-scale food production in Weifang, in the northern Shandong Province.

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Food Valley Ambassador Program Together with Wageningen University, Nutri-akt, Food Valley NL is building a global young persons high-performance network. A network with students and employees from twenty different countries.

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Establishing an agrifood innovation hub in LebanonLebanon has an excellent knowledge infrastructure, with well-trained agricultural engineers. But innovation is lagging behind. A project initiated by Food Valley NL, StartLife and Berytech, and financially supported by the Dutch government, aims to create a local agrifood innovation hub.

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Q-Point wins Food Valley Award 2016Q-Point Consultancy, with their food waste solution, were declared the winner of the Food Valley Award 2016. Their approach, already successfully tested in zoo restaurants, has great potential. Learn more about this year’s winner, and the two other nominees: Scelta Mushrooms and Sensor Spot.

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World Food Center in the NetherlandsMeet, experience and innovate at the World Food Center, opening in 2018, in Ede, the Netherlands. The center will highlight the strength of Dutch agrifood and inspire a broad audience: consumer and scientist; multinational and start-up.

The global market for sustainable proteins is growing rapidly.

In the Dutch Province of Gelderland, academia, industry and government are combining to shorten time-to-market of innovations in this emerging field. “Together we can make the protein transition happen,” says Roger van Hoesel, from Food Valley NL.

Around the world, awareness is growing that sustainable, plant-based diets are vital to food security, benefiting the environment, the climate and public health. In countries like the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland consumer demand for plant-based proteins is increasing fast. Germany leads the way, with an annual increase in the consumption of meat substitutes by 50% in 2015, to €122m. On a global level, the market for meat substitutes is expected to double between 2015-2020 to a value of USD5 billion.

Strong basis“The Dutch province of Gelderland is ideally suited to take these developments forward,” says Van Hoesel. In Gelderland, over 55 companies are working on (products with) sustainable proteins, often in partnerships such as Protein gets Color –an initiative by Food Valley NL and

Accelerating the transition to sustainable proteins

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East Netherlands Development Agency– and the Green Protein Accelerator, in which five SMEs are collaborating to shorten time-to-market of sustainable-protein innovations. “At the Food Valley Expo, last October, the partners presented a tasty, high-protein quinoa burger,” says Van Hoesel. “They are now experimenting with algae, water lentils and seaweed.” Wageningen University & Research and NIZO food research ensure the Netherlands has wide-ranging knowledge and expertise in the field of sustainable proteins. “Their skills cover protein sourcing and processing, upscaling and consumer feedback and they offer cutting-edge research facilities.”

Wageningen University & Research recently initiated two public-private partnerships: one focusing on upscaling of shear-cell technology for the production of fibrous meat replacers and the other on the nutritional quality of plant-based proteins. Via the Protein Competence Center the university closely collaborates with manufac-turers throughout the Netherlands.

Protein ClusterRepresentatives of the Gelderland provincial government recently submitted a proposal to underpin the work of local companies investing in sustainable proteins. “The idea is to establish a Protein Cluster, where companies can exchange ideas and experiences, and can work together to realize their goals,” says Van Hoesel. “The government will act as launching customer for product innovations: the staff restaurant of the province will serve new products based on ‘green proteins’.”

Transitioning towards more-sustainable protein production and consumption is complex and demands a multi-track policy that includes the total protein chain, from cultivation of protein-rich crops and development and optimization of production processing to attracting retailers and selling-through to consumers. “Gelderland has it all,” says van Hoesel. “We can’t wait to build our Protein Cluster.”


Worldwide businesses are continually developing innovative

solutions. WorldFoodInnovations.com features these innovations. In this edition we share a few impressive innovations from companies based in the Dutch province of Gelderland.

Fast, cost efficient and easy ELISA test for Bisphenol A | EuroProxima EuroProxima introduced an ELISA test for the detection of Bisphenol A (BPA). Compared to the HPLC technique that is commonly used, this ELISA is cost efficient, fast and easy to perform. In collaboration with RIKILT Wage-ningen UR the Bisphenol A ELISA has been validated for use in water and milkbased samples.

BPA is present in food packages containing polycarbon-ate plastics and epoxy resins. It is used, among others, in bottles for baby food and drinking water. BPA is a known endocrine disruptor, mimicking estrogens and thyroid hormones. The awareness of the health risks caused by Bisphenol A (BPA) is increasing world-wide. In 2015 more stringent European standards for safe exposure of work-ers and consumers to BPA were proposed. In Japan and the United States legislation is being developed as well, in order to minimize the exposure of humans to BPA.

Recently there are indications that BPA at lower levels than previously thought, may impair the immune system of the unborn child, infants and young children. In the coming years, Europe will re-evaluate the safety of BPA , after which the final scientific opinion is scheduled to be published in 2018.

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Discover & share innovations

GreenFood50® quinoa ingredients

In co-operation with Wageningen University & Research, GreenFood50 has developed a unique range of quinoa ingredients. These ingredients are highly nutritious, produced from sapon-free quinoa seeds grown in the EU and are easy to use. The key nutrients are proteins, dietary fibers, omega-6-9 fatty acids, vitamins B (folate), vitamin E and the minerals iron, phosphor, magnesium and zinc.

The native protein fraction of GreenFood50 quinoa ingredients contains all essential amino acids in an excellent natural balance. Due to the wide application range these ingredients will help consumers to reach their daily required protein amount. Especially consumers with additional requirements such as athletes, chil-dren, pregnant women, seniors and patients.

GreenFood50’s quinoa ingredients are gluten-free, non-GMO and without additives, preservatives and allergens. The ingredients are applied in a wide range of application such as bakery products, healthy snacks, nutritional bars, sauces, soups, spreads, pastas, sports nutrition, gluten-free products and vegetarian and vegan products. They are produced in The Netherlands with clean production technology against the highest quality standards.


Sustainable, efficient, advanced crop- production systems | Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture

Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture develops con-cepts and integrated designs for greenhouse horticul-ture systems such as mobile and substrate-free systems, innovative greenhouses and systems for the early detec-tion of plant pathogens in crops. Ranging from total concepts to small improvements, the innovations in cul-tivation and production systems offered by Wageningen University and Research save on labor costs and increase the efficiency and sustainability of companies.

New total concepts include mobile cropping systems and revolutionary greenhouse designs. Climate control, energy saving, efficient energy conversion and water quality are key in this respect. Furthermore, strategies and technologies for sustainable crop protection are developed. Components for production and selection systems such as innovative sensors, vision systems and robots are produced and tested. In designing new concepts one looks beyond the level of individual green-house horticulture companies. This reflects the core con-viction that the clustering of companies, combinations with other functions and integration within (urban) environments can also lead to sustainable innovations.

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Virtual shop: cost-effective testing of store & product changes | Noldus Information Technology

Noldus InnovationWorks and Green Dino have part-nered in the development of Virtual Shop, a set up that provides insights on how purchase intent is affected by aspects such as packaging design, product position on a shelf, product placement in a store, store layout, product labeling or the presence of advertisements like posters in the shop. This Virtual Shop also offers you the possibility to test product or packaging concepts that do not exist yet or are difficult (or even impossible) to real-ize at this moment. One of the great advantages of the virtual world is that you can quickly change the layout of a shop or the design of packaging without the time and expenses of altering anything in the real world.

Artificial intelligence is used to create a realistic interactive shopping experience. It allows for control-lable, adaptable, and reproducible shopping scenarios. A remote eye tracking system is included in the setup, which allows dynamic analysis on where the test person is looking at, in what order and how long. Automatic recording of the shopper’s behavior and shopper’s gaze takes place. Physiological responses of the test person are also registered.

Improving melon shelf life with non-GMO molecular breeding technique | KeyGene

KeyGene® applies a multidimensional approach to improve the shelf life in melon. In climacteric fruits, like apple, ripening continues after picking. Nonclimacteric fruits like grape only ripen while still attached to the plant. Melon has both climacteric and non-climacteric varieties. The climacteric melon has better aromas and it is easier to recognize when they are ripe. The nonclimac-teric melon hardly ripens after picking but has a longer shelf life. How combine the best of both types of fruits in order to control the ripening process and to improve shelf life?

KeyGene® created transcriptomic and genetic data on involved genes, as well as phenotypic data (how does the melon look or taste) and combines it with informa-tion available in the public domain. A candidate gene list will be selected for further study based on knowledge of the gene’s impact on shelf life. Validation will provide an answer on the key question: which genes are really involved in the ripening process in melon?

Then, the KeyPoint® Mutation Breeding technology comes around in order to reach the final goal: a melon variety with adequate shelf life and with all qualities consumers appreciate.

A fresh-grazed grass indicator based on big milk data | Qlip

Qlip has developed a novel grazing indicator. Not all modern dairy farmers find it practical to allow cows to graze from spring until fall. This is why dairy suppliers’ milk is regularly tested to determine whether milk was produced by cows that graze on pasture.

This indicator provides a new method for monitoring and safeguarding sufficient grazing, showing whether the milk tested was produced by cows nourished by fresh grazed grass. The composition of milk is affected by what a cow eats, making it possible to see whether they were fed fresh grazed grass or other feed. The milk is analyzed by means of infrared technology. This results in a unique spectrum for every milk sample, supplying information about the specific composition of the milk. This information can be related to the intake of freshly grazed grass.

The spectra and computational models underlying the grazing indicator are also used for the development of other indicators that use big data from milk to deter-mine animal health, animal welfare and sustainability. Dairy farmers use the data to make farm management decisions. The same data enable the dairy sector to assure the safety and quality of milk.

Mild preservation for optimum freshness | Coolwave Processing

Fresh juice looks – and tastes – so much better than the juices that often dominate our supermarket shelves. There is an undeniable consumer demand for fresh juice. Yet the available product choice remains limited, implying that growth opportunities are being missed. Producing fresh juice for retail that is both safe and profitable has been difficult until now. With the introduction of PurePulse, you can now produce fresh juice with a longer shelf life while optimally preserving all its goodness, including vitamins, aroma, color and flavor.

The use of a PurePulse installation to produce fresh juice enables you to simplify your distribution chain and expands your potential sales market from local to regional. You can offer your retail customers a longer shelf life, which dramatically reduces their waste.

PurePulse is the next generation of Pulsed Electric Field (PEF), which is way milder than classical thermal treat-ment. PurePulse applies cold pasteurization to liquid products. The process starts with a mild preheating, which softens the membrane of bacteria, yeasts and moulds. The softened membranes are more susceptible to electroporation – with results in microbial inactivation – by PurePulse treatment. After treatment the product is quickly cooled down to preserve the fresh characteristics of the product.

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On-the-spot quality soil analysis for increased yields | Soilcares

SoilCares developed an easy-to-use handheld SoilCares Scanner which enables farmers to do their own on-the-spot quality soil checks. The Scanner will determine the amount of Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium avail-able in the soil as well as the pH and the organic matter level. The data have to be uploaded via a specific app. To predict the soil status, the Scanner results are compared with the SoilCares Global Soil Database. The farmer will be provided with a report on the smartphone, containing a list of crops suitable for the soil that was checked, as well as hands-on lime and fertilizer recommendation alternatives that are available in a specific country.

The easy-to-use scanner has very sophisticated and ground breaking technology inside. It contains a light source, a Near Infra Red Spectrometer on a chip and an Electric Conductivity meter. The real game changer, however, is the combination of the device and the unique database in the cloud, containing the knowledge of leading soil scientists. The scans from the SoilCares scanner are compared with the data in the cloud and crop specific fertilizer recommendations are provided via the farmer’s smartphone.

MORE INFORMATIONwww.WorldFoodInnovations.com


A global business network serving the agro-food industries that has its

finger on the pulse of innovation: four new members explain why they joined the Food Valley Society.

“We want to develop our network” “As a subsidiary of the Japanese trading and investment house Mitsui & Co. Ltd., we manage Mitsui’s business interests in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and food resources and products are part of our key business areas. We are interested in the Netherlands’ position as the second largest exporter of agrifood products in the world, and the cutting-edge developments in agro-food technol-ogy. These were the key reasons for choosing Food Valley to growing our business relationships and network, and we look forward to developing our activities there.” Susan Cooper, researcher at Mitsui & Co. Europe Plc, London, member since July 2016

A window for Dutch knowledge and technology“The Bakery Academy advises industrial bakeries around the world about improving efficiency of production processes and enhancing shelf-life, texture and taste. Our company also supports bakeries and suppliers in R&D and product development. We see the Food Valley Society as a window for Dutch knowledge and technol-ogy that enables us to exchange experiences and ideas with other companies and gives us access to a broad international audience. Being a member has already put us in contact with potential clients in China.”

Jos Vast, Managing Partner of the Bakery Academy, Winsum (NL), member since March 2016.

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Food Valley Society: new members

At the center of global food innovation“Plant & Food Research is deeply committed to The Science of Premium™ for the horticulture, cropping, wine and seafood sectors. That means using the best science to deliver tangible results for producers and marketers, by directly meeting the desires of high-value consumers. We are constantly looking for opportunities to connect with other players in global food innovation, and we know that Food Valley NL is at the center of that global conversation. It is a privilege for us to join such an inspiring ecosystem.”

Roger Bourne, Strategic Marketing Manager at The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research, Auckland, member since November 2016

Establishing partnerships with other pioneers“Nochey develops and produces healthy food products - made from insects - including meat replacers, ready-to-eat meals and sports nutrition; we want to acquaint the Western world with this sustainable nutrient source. We became a member of the Food Valley Society to increase brand awareness outside the Netherlands, our home country. Food Valley NL has an excellent reputation around the world and our product innovations are in line with their focus on sustainable innovation. We hope for great interest from abroad, and to establish partner-ships with other pioneers in the world of food.” Frank Kamsteeg, Director Nochey, Deventer (NL), member since May 2016.


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StartUp company:

Green Banana Food

Rich in fibers, high in protein, gluten free and

totally delicious; this innovative, sustainably-produced pasta range has been developed by Sean Patrick, founder of Green Banana Food. In this Food Valley Update he shares his ambitions and ideas with you.

“As a little boy, growing up in Uganda, I quickly learned that you can prepare all sorts of delicious meals with green bananas. My ‘home-kitchen’ experiments have matured into professional product development at our lab, in the Dutch city of The Hague.

Culinary secretsMy early discoveries formed the basis of the culinary secrets behind Green Banana Food’s novel innovations: nutritious, gluten-free, delicious pasta made from green bananas and a variety of pulses, legumes and vegetables. The pasta range - which is ready to market - is minimally-processed, sustainably-produced and fairly-sourced via direct partnerships with smallholder farmers in Uganda.

The products are made from green bananas that are currently under-utilized. In the harvest season the local markets – there are virtually no exports – cannot use all the fresh produce offered, resulting in post-harvest losses and in farmers selling cheap in order to mitigate their losses. Drying the green bananas increases shelf-life, and blending them with pulses and ancient grains such as amaranth and sorghum adds value to all the raw materials in this chain.

Broad product rangeI believe Africa’s agricultural and culinary traditions have much to offer the food market in developed countries. In my youth, superfoods like avocado and amaranth– all high in nutrients, low in calories and with a low glycemic index – were part of our daily diet. Steaming used to be a very common and traditional way to prepare food in most African homes; people just knew it is good to eat this way. Unfortunately, even here in Africa, we see obesity rates growing, mostly in urban households and especially in children. More and more people are adopting a more highly-processed fast-food diets.

In addition to the pasta varieties, we are already working on other green-banana-based products like bread, pizza dough and chocolate spread. The lab- scale trials of pizza dough and chocolate spread have been very well received, and this is the confirmation I needed. We are now networking with other food labs and as soon as the pasta is launched, we will get on

with developing other products. The bread is a rather more complicated process, but still shows great potential. Food Valley ExpoI would be very happy to see all our products on super-market shelves across Europe and the USA. Presenting our pasta at the Food Valley Expo, 13 October, was a crucial step. Feedback, also from large organizations, including an international retailer and a food service company specializing in hospital meals, was excellent.

According to the retailer, the combination of health benefits and social impact makes our products perfect for supermarket shelves. Feedback from the food service company inspired us to explore another target group for our products: hospital patients who need energy and proteins for recovery after surgery or disease. We are now looking for partners in this sector.

On the shelvesOur presence at the Food Valley Expo also provided us with many valuable new contacts, including a bakery-expertise company that will support our product development, ingredient companies interested in green-banana flour and even a retailer who is interested in being the first to introduce our products on the supermarket shelves.”


Gelderland and China intensify their collaboration.

After opening a representative office in the southern province Fujian one year ago, Food Valley NL and Wage-ningen University & Research are now closely involved in an ambitious project in Weifang, in the northern Shandong Province. Their task: transforming Food Valley China into one of the largest and most advanced areas for food production worldwide.

Not only is China the country with the longest border and the most inhabitants, it is also the world’s largest exporter and one of the fastest-growing economies on the planet. According to The Economist, the size of the Chinese consumer market is second only to the United States. With the emergence of a new, affluent middle class, comes a parallel demand for high-quality food products: fresh, safe and healthy. The Chinese government wants to modernize both the regulatory mechanisms and the food-supply system in order to meet the standards required by more-modern food economies,” says Roger van Hoesel, Managing Director of Food Valley NL. “The Dutch have the knowledge, skills and specialist technology in agrifood required, making them an interesting collaboration partner.”

Gelderland and China intensify their collaboration

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Exchanging knowledge and expertiseThis is why Food Valley NL opened, in November 2015, a representative office in the southern Province of Fujian; in the city of Zhangzhou, right besides the Sino-Europe Agricultural Development Centre (SEADC). “The office supports both Dutch and Chinese agrifood companies in exchanging knowledge and expertise on, for example, food safety and sustainable processing,” says Van Hoesel. Via the office Dutch companies are consulted on how to approach the Chinese market; the other way around, Chinese companies can present knowledge questions to be answered by experts in The Netherlands.

Extra dimensionWith the Food Valley China project the contact between Gelderland and China has now got an extra dimension. “We will, on request of the Weifang government, develop a plan to transform this area into one of the largest and most state-of-the-art food production centers world-wide,” says Van Hoesel. “We will answer questions on, for example, how to add extra value to food products and

which research organizations and companies throughout the supply-chain should be attracted.” Other activities include the set-up of training programs and the creation of partnerships.

“The first stage of the project, during which five experts from the Netherlands went on a fact-finding mission to Weifang, is now complete. Discussions about the next phase of the project are scheduled for January 2016.”

Marvelous opportunitiesVan Hoesel, enthusiastically: “The rise of China is irrevers-ible. The country and its businesses have a growing need for safe, high quality, sustainably-produced food. Wherever one looks, the country offers Dutch companies and research institutes marvelous business opportunities.”


Q-Point Consultancy, with their food waste solution, were declared

the winner of the Food Valley Award 2016. Their approach, already successfully tested in zoo restaurants, has great potential. In the Netherlands alone the hospitality industry wastes an estimated 51,000 tonnes (€ 0.4 billion euros) of food each year. The prize was awarded during the Food Valley Expo, October 13, 2016.

“Winning the Food Valley Award is a great opportunity to bring our innovation to the attention of an international audience,” said Carel Jaspers, director and founder of Q Point BV (www.q-point-bv.nl). The Wageningen consulting agency is now introducing the food waste-reduction approach to the entire hospitality industry. “Our innovation is of interest to all those places visited by day trippers,” said Jaspers. “We are already broad-ening our approach to involve suppliers to catering establishments.”

Paradigm shift in thinkingQ-Point’s approach helps companies in the catering and hospitality industry to accurately estimate the amount of food needed, and the times when it should be available, based on concrete data. This enables them to target food waste reduction in their organizations. The method has been successfully applied in zoo restaurants, where one of the restaurants saw their waste reduce by 75%. They prepared and served the same volume of meals, yet purchased almost 30% fewer ‘raw’ materials. The idea was initially developed for Burgers’ Zoo; later Emmen

Q-Point wins Food Valley Award 2016

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Zoo and the Apenheul joined in. Other partners were Wageningen UR and software specialist Nostradamus. The initiative brought about a mental shift in participating restaurants and staff: they discovered that they could offer quality, choice and be customer friendly, without holding large stocks. The jury called Q-Point’s system “a unique initiative with great potential.”

Food Valley AwardIn this twelfth year of the Food Valley Award, an independ-ent jury evaluated the entries on their degree of innovation,

Scelta Mushrooms Scelta Taste Accelerator enhances the perception of saltiness in food products while eliminating the need to add sodium. The product range, made using waste streams from mushroom processing, is a ‘clean label’ alternative for monosodium glutamate (MSG; E621) and yeast extract. It allows manufacturers to develop formulations with 50% less salt without compromising taste or functionality. “Creating low-sodium products without compromising product quality has proven quite difficult, but Scelta appears to have found an effective solution to the problem,” the jury commented. www.sceltamushrooms.com

SensorSpot SensorSpot has developed a cost-efficient and flexible non-invasive system for measuring the oxygen level in individual units of packaged foods. The system consists of a sensor with a special pigment, which is printed on the inside of the packaging material, and a reading device that can quickly check whether the packaging atmosphere is still intact without punc-turing the packaging film. According to the jury, the SensorSpot system is an excellent, cost-efficient way to ensure that fewer products end up in the waste bin. www.sensorspot.nl


economic viability and cooperation. All submissions were socially responsible and sustainable. In addition to Q-Point, Scelta Mushrooms and Sensor Spot were also nominated (see text box).

World Food CenterA global nexus for agrifood innovation

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Meet, experience and innovate at the World Food Center, opening in 2018, in Ede, the

Netherlands. The center will inspire a broad audience: consumer and scientist; multinational and start-up. “It will highlight the strength of Dutch agrifood and its global reach,” say Edo Müller and Frits Dimmendaal, major players in the initiative.

There will be three elements to the World Food Center, which will be housed in the former Maurits Barracks near Ede-Wageningen railway station. First, it will offer visitors an experience of what happens across the supply chain – from cultivation of crops, transport of raw materials and food processing, to the moment a delicious meal appears on your plate. “We have hired BRC Imagination Arts – an American agency that has a strong international track record in the development of experience centers and museums,” says Müller. “Our aim is to present information in an objective and honest way, and to win the hearts of visitors.”

Second, a major research programme has been set up, in which scientists and consumers cooperate in developing healthy and sustainable food products. The programme is an initiative by the universities of Groningen, Maastricht, Nijmegen, Utrecht and Wageningen, and business and government. The focus is on food in relation to health, consumer behaviour, co-creation and a sustainable and safe food chain. The WFC offers programme partners the unique opportunity to come into contact with large numbers of consumers and conduct research with them,” says Müller.

World Food IncubatorThe third element in the World Food Center focuses on innovation. “We will establish the Food Incubator, for start-ups with international ambitions in food (e)commerce,” says Dimmendaal. “Imagine companies who want to develop new concepts for personalized shopping, integrate the IOT (Internet of Things) into location-based marketing or develop advanced systems for efficient supply and distribution.”

The incubator will offer them fully-equipped work spaces and meeting rooms where they can share ambitions and ideas. Start-ups can apply for coaching by experienced entrepreneurs and participate in professional-development acceleration programmes. The incubator will also open the doors to investors and seed capital.

Perfect combinationAccording to Dimmendaal and Müller, the World Food Center will confirm and strengthen Food Valley’s preeminent position as a fulcrum of agrifood knowledge and expertise. “The center perfectly complements Wageningen University & Research, just five kilometers away”, enthuses Dimmendaal. “Wageningen University & Research focuses on the science-to-business segment, whereas the World Food Center will concentrate on science-to-consumer and business-to-consumer. All three are equally vital to the competitiveness of agrifood companies.”

The initiative has drawn the attention of several leading agrifood companies. “Together we are discussing issues like the center’s responsibility to contribute to public debates, for example on food security or sustainable production,” says Müller. “And, of course, practical questions like agreeing the parameters of our collaboration.” Food Valley NL and StartLife are working together to turn the incubator plans into a concrete, essential resource.

Global hubAccording to Dimmendaal and Müller, within a few years the World Food Center will be attracting at least 200,000 visitors per year. “Then we will be truly able to say that we have established an iconic location central to global agrifood innovation.” www.worldfoodcenters.com

The WFC is an initiative by WFC Development (a joint venture between Green Real Estate and the Van Wijnen Groep), Ede municipal district, Wageningen University & Research and the World Food Centers Foundation.


Building a global young persons high-performance network worldwide10 Years Food Valley Ambassador Program

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Food Valley, Wageningen University, Nutri-Akt and food-

industry multinationals combine to ensure top-quality employees are in place for the challenges of the next decade. The Food Valley Ambassador Program is our dedicated response to the food sector’s demand for highly-trained personnel, product and process development, and internationalization. High-potential, second-year, master students at Wageningen University (Food Safety, Food Technology and Food Quality) are being offered one-year, Netherlands-based internships at multinational food and life sciences companies.

The host companies provide the students with a challenging project, with the length of the internship allowing the students to take on larger or multiple projects. Recruitment and matchmaking is provided by Nutri-akt, specialists in this field. The internship program is supported by the Province of Gelderland.

After the launch ten years ago, the Food Valley Ambassador Program has developed into a web of high-performance employees and students in the following countries: • Armenia• Australia• Belgium• China• Denmark• Germany• Greece• France• India• Indonesia• Lithuania• Mexico• Peru• Romania• Singapore• Thailand• Turkey• United Kingdom• United States of America• Vietnam More informationAre you interested in creating the next-generation, high-performance network? Or interested in doing business or exploring new markets in one of the countries which are home to our ambassadors? Please contact [email protected].


Lebanon has an excellent knowledge infrastructure, with well-trained

agricultural engineers. But innovation is lagging behind. A project initiated by Food Valley NL, StartLife and Berytech, and financially supported by the Dutch government, aims to create a local agrifood innovation hub. The initiative will enhance the country’s international competitiveness and create new jobs.

In the Arab world, the Lebanese have always been known for their entrepreneurial spirit. The people of this small country, on the eastern Mediterranean Sea, are highly- educated and, after the civil war ended in 1989, the financial sector and tourism have developed rapidly and are flourishing.

Currently, however, there are still some major issues to be addressed. “The population is growing rapidly, partly due to the influx of refugees from neighboring Syria and Iraq, which is putting pressure on food security,” says Marc Zeenny, commercial attaché to the Dutch Embassy in Beirut. “Moreover, due to climate change, water is becoming increasingly scarce.”

Compared to finance and tourism, the agricultural sector in Lebanon is a relatively poor performer. “Agri-food production is responsible for more than 60 percent of the country’s water consumption; the sector needs to substantially increase its production and productivity with less water.”

To the next levelThe Dutch embassy saw opportunities for collaboration between Lebanon and the Netherlands, with its interna-tional strong track record in agrifood technology. They found a good partner in Berytech, who proposed a plan for the development of a local agrifood innovation hub; the first in Lebanon to be dedicated entirely to agriculture. Food Valley NL and StartLife got involved to support them with the implementation of the plan.

The project comes as part of an €86m developmental aid package from the Dutch Government to Lebanon. “The project fits well with agriculture, as it is one of our country’s export products, and with our integrated approach to using development aid,” explains Zeenny. Other local projects funded by the Dutch government include rehabilitation and upgrade of the TVET Agriculture schools (together with UN FAO), support of farmers in land reclamation and terracing for their farms, and supporting water provision facilities, in the Bekaa Valley, to manage water resources and monitor water quality.

The Dutch Government has recently approved the project and Berytech is now preparing for roadshows in universities. “The aim is to motivate young students and new graduates to start their own companies,” says Zeenny. “We will challenge them to bring in the new thinking that Lebanese agriculture needs.”

Establishing an agrifood innovation hub in Lebanon

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Selection procedureA selection of 30 start-ups will be supported in validating their ideas. “They will receive coaching and their products will undergo a FabLab examination,” says Zeenny. Fifteen out of the 30 will go through to Stage 2, and benefit from an extensive coaching and mentoring program with Dutch experts. “These start-ups will have to create a legal entity, register their intellectual property and learn how to keep accounts, market their products and develop their businesses.”

Five companies will, subsequently, be shortlisted to benefit from a soft-landing program at StartLife and Foodvalley NL. “The companies will travel to the Netherlands where they will meet with colleagues from the industry and

utilize Dutch expertise in agriculture, as well being introduced to networks and access to finance,” explains the commercial attaché. The selection process will take place with the input and counseling of Food Valley NL - and StartLife experts.

Bright futureZeenny has high expectations of the initiative. “Lebanon has so much to offer, from highly-educated people and an expanding start-up ecosystem, to major investment opportunities,” he says. “Through this project we hope to give the talented, younger and tech-savvy generation a bright future and to create prosperity throughout the supply chain.”


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Since its establishment in 2004, Food Valley NL has built up a deep insight into the challenges of the (agri)food industry and a vast network of companies and knowledge institutions that can help in tackle these challenges effectively.From its home base in Wageningen, the Netherlands, every day Food Valley NL works on speeding up the innovation performance of companies, both from the Netherlands and abroad.


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