Gut microbiome, menopause, and healthy ageing in the spotlight at Positive Nutrition Summit 2023

Go with your Gut: How the Evolving Science and Consumer Understanding of Biotics and the Gut Microbiome are Shaping Food Innovation

Speaker: Miguel Freitas, PhD​, VP Scientific Affairs at Danone North America​

A strong and rapidly growing body of evidence suggests healthy gut bacteria is a foundation of overall human health, and consumers are more interested in gut health and biotics than ever before. This trend is driving food and beverage innovation on a massive scale as brands rush to formulate products marketed to positively impact the microbiome, for example foods and beverages that include probiotics and prebiotics. While there are benefits to making products aimed at improving gut health available on a wider scale, not all new products are driven by the science and there is a significant amount of consumer confusion around biotics and the way these products are developed and labelled. How can food and beverage innovators best leverage the evolving research to tap into this increasing demand while accurately translating the science?

• Understand the science behind biotics and the gut microbiome and their connection to overall human health.
• Understand consumer knowledge and the most common misperceptions related to biotics and the gut microbiome.
• Discuss current food and beverage innovation around biotics and best practices for accurately translating the science and various product benefits.

Menopause is the New Vegan

Speaker: Heather Jackson​, Co-Founder, GenM​

The last few years have seen the menopause enter the national conversation like never before, offering unprecedented potential. Food, drink and nutrition brands have the purposeful opportunity to serve this audience and support menopausal consumers. In this talk, Heather will explain why brand-led progress can take nutritional menopause support to the next level. With 20% of the population in menopause at any one time, this societal issue impacts everyone. Through purposeful collaboration, the menopausal audience can reach the same status as the vegan market.

• Menopause is not a women's issue per se - it's a societal issue that affects everybody
• The nutrition industry has a purposeful and powerful opportunity to cater to the menopause

Menopause affects every area of business from new product development to product signposting to marketing to HR

And it’s not all about gut health, healthy ageing and menopause. Over three days Positive Nutrition will take a deep dive into five core themes:

Session 1: Rethinking Reformulation​

Nutritionists have been encouraging us to eat more fruit, veg and whole grains for decades - but this approach has failed to tackle issues like obesity. Reformulation and innovation are therefore key to securing a healthier and more sustainable future for food. In this session, FoodNavigator journalists will be joined by an expert line-up of speakers to discuss how public health challenges can be met by leveraging technical advances and ingredient innovation. What will healthier products look like in 2023 and beyond?

Session 2: Plant-Based Potential​

Most of us need to increase the plant-based content of our diet to meet government-backed recommendations like the Eatwell Plate. But with the term ‘plant-based’ being stretched to include anything from ultra-processed burger patties, to bakery products and vegan nuggets, is there a risk that the plant-based category is falling fowl of health-washing? How can innovation in the plant-based space ensure products are delivering nutritionally dense, clean label products that also meet the organoleptic expectations of consumers?

Session 3: Food as Medicine​

Between dietary interventions that promise to help reverse the onset of NCDs like obesity and a rejection of ‘diets’ in favour of wellness maintenance and body positive weight management, a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between diet and health is coming to shape consumer attitudes to food – and the innovation strategies of the brands that serve them. But, looking beyond the hype, what ingredients and strategies are truly delivering in this area? And how can the benefits be communicated?

Session 4: How Tech is Transforming Wellness and Diet​

Digital technological developments are having a profound impact on what we eat. From digital apps that promise personalised dietary advice and consultation, to AI that can help reformulate products further and faster, we’ll analyse what the digital revolution means for positive nutrition and population health.

Session 5: Lifecycle Nutrition​

The nutrients we need change dramatically as we age. From tot to teen, zoomers to boomers, our bodies need very different diets to support wellness. What innovation opportunities does the deepening understanding of lifecycle nutrition offer and how can the food industry meet the segmented needs of the mass market?