EULAFF is supported by the European Commission Directorate-General
for Research
Workshop on “Opportunities for new functional food, healthcare and wellness products”
8-9 December 2008 - Gent, Belgium
Context:
Some Latin American plants with health-related attributes have the potential to satisfy the growing international demand for foods, healthcare and wellness products with high nutritional and functional value, especially in Europe. Thus it is important to promote the development of export markets for functional food products from Latin American agro-biodiverse crops. This need is being addressed in the EC project EULAFF (European Action on Latin American Functional Foods; http://www.efb-central.org/eulaff/).
The commercial development of a functional food sector and its corresponding supply chain has the potential to significantly contribute to the economic development of Latin American countries, which , along with the development of a European functional foods sector, is the main purpose of EULAFF.
In addition, identification of the active ingredients in these foods, and characterisation of their therapeutic and pharmacological activities would provide new opportunities in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and ingredients sectors.
Previous workshops held by EULAFF demonstrated a number of promising value chains that have been identified by Latin American research teams and that are of potential interest for European companies in the food, drinks and pharmaceutical sectors.
Objectives of the Workshop
- To present and discuss research findings that are of potential commercial interest
- Analyse the opportunities for commercialisation in Europe
- Analyse the possible limitations for reaching the European market (supply chains, institutions, policies)
- Develop an action agenda
Work Programme
Day 1 – Open forum – opportunities, obstacles and challenges – from farm to market
- What are the most interesting opportunities: Latin American expert presentations on opportunities identified of potential interest to the food, drink and pharmaceuticals markets
- What industry and the market want: European expert presentations on European consumer expectations, consumer trends, industry drivers, the regulatory environment, commercialisation strategies and public-private cooperation strategies
Day 2 – Basic principles and ideas for a Work agenda on the subject
- Workgroup 1: Analysis of opportunities in the food and beverage sector
- Workgroup 2: Analysis of opportunities in the healthcare and wellness sector
- Plenary meeting with presentations and discussions of the workgroups proposals
- Formulation of a Work Agenda
Announcement:
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