The unbroken trend towards more and more (highly) processed and prepared foods was the focus of the event, which was organised by the SATW, Swiss Food Research and the Office for Economic Affairs of the Canton of Zurich as part of the Food 4.0 initiative.
Prof. em. Erich Windhab (ETH Zurich, SATW) began with a wide-ranging insight into the significance of processed food. He emphasised health and ecological aspects: worldwide food production is anything but sustainable. The fact that there will soon be more people who are overfed than underfed is also a signal that we should act.
‘Is oat milk not so healthy after all?’ was the title of the presentation by Dr Eric Mehner (Agroscope). He presented exciting findings from the TA-SWISS study on meat and milk substitute products. While meat alternatives are better than the original in all respects, the picture for milk substitutes is more mixed: according to Mehner, the overall health and energy balance is marred by the sometimes high water consumption, insufficient nutrients but too much salt, sugar and saturated fatty acids.
Three start-ups from the SATW's Food 4.0 programme presented their products from the Canton of Zurich in the subsequent pitch: Eddy Müller (catchfree seafood alternative), Dr. Stefan Bolliger (cuckoo - vegan ice cream) and Ivana Sono Brun (Brewdaz / Liver Cool, alcohol-free beer) were able to present their products and showed how difficult every beginning is. Everything has to be just right for a new product: time, place, taste, appearance, demand, price, nutritional value, ingredients and shelf life. It also has to be scalable quickly if it is to be a hit with consumers.
In a lively panel discussion with Ralph Langholz (Elsa Group, Swiss Protein Association SPA), Ivonne Blossfeld (Environment and Health Department of the City of Zurich), Moritz Stauffer (Menu and More AG), Prof. em. Erich Windhab (ETH Zurich, SATW), processed food was examined from all sides. Good initiatives such as healthy school and canteen nutrition are partially undermined by changing habits, according to Moritz Stauffer. The participants agreed that the acceptance of decision-making aids for food choice, such as Nutriscore, must be better tested and communicated. To this end, the practical skills of culinary arts should be taught more again, said Ivonne Blossfeld. Because home-cooked and homemade food not only tastes best, it also has the most nutritional value.
At the well-attended Future Food Market, visitors were able to discover the delicious world of innovative foods from start-ups and producers in the Canton of Zurich – and take tasty bites into the future of our nutrition.
Panellists (in German)
Study - substitutes for meat and milk, TA-Swiss
Exhibitors at the Future Food Market (in German)
