There’s less than three weeks left to enter the World Beverage Innovation Awards 2017, which will be presented at Drinktec in Munich on 14 September. As Drinktec only comes round once every four years, this is a particularly good opportunity to highlight your company’s innovations from the past year at one of the industry’s biggest shows.
The awards have been running for many years and are a fantastic way for you to bolster and enhance your brand, providing a hallmark of success that will prevail long after the awards ceremony draws to a close. Here, four of the judges from the awards tell us what they’re hoping to see from your entry.
Ashanti Bentil Dhue Food business consultant, podcast host and Virgin Start Up mentor
I’m very excited to be part of the World Beverage Innovation Awards 2017. I love to see new brands emerge which add to consumer dining and eating experiences. I also really enjoy hearing unique and authentic brand stories coming from passionate founding teams. Here’s what I’m looking for:
Aparna Oak Director of flavour innovation, Imbibe
There are several factors that continue to inspire innovation across food and beverage, with health and wellness being one of the biggest drivers. In conjunction with the evolution of ‘healthy’, we see a higher demand for clean-label products, products that deliver health benefits naturally and the utilisation of ingredients that are closer to the source. I look forward to judging the World Beverage Innovation Awards 2017 and will be paying close attention to the following five considerations for stand-out products:
Larry Hobbs Executive director, International Society of Beverage Technologists
I will be looking for applications of proven new technologies, processes and ingredients which will increase the growth and scope of the beverage industry.
Bill Bruce Founder, Bill Bruce Communications
I have had the privilege of being involved with FoodBev Media’s international awards schemes since they began way back in 2003 with the ‘bottledwaterworld design awards’.
Back then, and initially with a focus on packaged water, the judges were primarily evaluating design issues. But even then, the industry impressed with going way beyond great graphics and delivering exceptional and often surprising technical innovation in packaging and in material choice. Even then, environmental sustainability has risen rapidly up the agenda.
Fast forward to this year’s awards, the be presented this September at Drinktec in Munich, and I’m excited to see the inevitably wide range of entries from all over the world.
And what am I expecting to see? Well, while I expect surprises – and I have never been disappointed in that regard – I am expecting transparency and clear communication as a theme for this stage in the industry’s innovation journey.
The beverage industry has mostly been ahead of the ‘sugar’ debate for quite some time, so while new entries and brand extensions will no doubt reflect sugar reduction or replacement, I expect it is the way that they communicate ‘free-from’ or ‘zero’ that will demonstrate the most innovation.
Functionality remains important and from fairly obvious segments such as protein or vitamins – it is often in this space that we see new ingredients or combinations of ingredients.
Consumption occasion continues to create opportunity for innovation and I believe there is still plenty of space available in the ‘on-the-go’ category and ‘meal replacement’ – particularly breakfast, which neatly mixes the two together as more people consume their first meal of the day either on their way to work, or at work.
Sustainability and responsibility go hand-in-hand and I expect the industry will once again impress. It’s not just real and measurable environmental improvements and issues such as Fairtrade, but more importantly, perhaps, how brands better engage with their consumers through communicating their often ground-breaking best-practice behaviour.
And why does this awards scheme matter? Well, looking back at close to a decade and a half of celebrating excellence, it’s fascinating to see the changes and developments year on year. And while I still recognise the importance of great design – and of course, great taste – it is the increasingly responsible behaviour of the industry that continues to impress me most.
Tod Christenson Director of the Beverage Industry Environmental Roundtable
To win my vote in the 2017 World Beverage Innovation Awards, entrants should meet the following criteria:
Brian Suthoff Founder and president, Hub Beverage
As a distributor and marketer of emerging products, I have to evaluate the opportunity and risk of bringing products into new markets. There are a few things I typically emphasise:
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