New initiative launched to encourage food and nutrition research

The Future Food Initiative, a joint research programme, was launched earlier this week. It will bring together Swiss academic and industrial partners leading in nutritional science and food technology, These will include ETH Zurich and the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), together with Swiss companies Nestlé, Bühler and Givaudan.

The initiative encourages food and nutrition research in areas relevant to consumer trends and sustainability, and it includes a postdoctoral fellowship program to promote young scientists. The first research projects will focus on plant-based nutrition and ancient plant varieties.

Stefan Palzer, CTO of Nestlé S.A. said, “We accelerate innovation in collaboration with a variety of external partners, including world-class academia, globally leading suppliers and creative start-ups across the world. To address open scientific questions and challenges related to food trends and sustainable nutrition is key for us as we create tasty and nutritious food for all age groups. As one of the initiators of this important Swiss research initiative, we reaffirm our commitment to further strengthen the unique Swiss research ecosystem for food and nutrition research.”

“Givaudan is proud to be a co-founder of the Future Food Initiative,” said Gilles Andrier, CEO of Givaudan. “As the leader in our industry, we have a responsibility to contribute to improving the sustainability of the food value chain. It is only through collaborations such as this, bringing together industry, academia and the brightest and best young scientists, that we will be able to address the future challenges of our food systems.”