There’s three weeks left to enter the World Dairy Innovation Awards 2017, to be presented on 7 June at the Global Dairy Congress in Dublin. These 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.
With that in mind, we’ve asked the judges in this year’s scheme what they are looking for from entrants to help you with your application.
Steve Osborn The Aurora Ceres Partnership technology scout
Its fantastic to be invited to act as a judge for the World Dairy Innovation Awards 2017. As food technology scouts we spend our time scouring the wide reaches of the food and beverage industry looking for that next big thing. One of our big challenges is always separating the real highlights from the surrounding noise. To find those sparks of inspiration I’ll be applying some of the technology scouting tools to really evaluate how these dairy innovations are shaping up. In essence I’ll be looking at the technology readiness using a clover leaf model that comprises of four objective measures of readiness, and a fifth that is a little more emotional!
At ACP we consider that innovation is a process that adds value, but also inspires. Good luck to all the entries, the standard is going be high and the judging will be stringent!
Pierre Achard Suez Global food and beverage market director, France
As an informed and engaged citizen and consumer, I always look for affordable dairy products but ones that are also sustainable and, above all, good for my health. I feel very strongly about post-consumption footprint, short production-consumption loops and environmental commitment. Feeding the world is a big responsibility.
Furthermore, as a contributor, working at Suez, the leader in resource management, I am aware of the challenges that the companies who work in the food and beverage sector must overcome. Not only to differentiate themselves from the fierce competition, but to also deal with worldwide problems such as limited resources, population growth, rising living standards, tightening regulatory frameworks, innovative technologies and circularity models. It’s all about turning constraints into opportunities.
In my eyes, a great candidate for the World Dairy Innovation Awards will keep the following in mind:
I can’t wait to see what you will all present and good luck to all the entrants in this year’s World Dairy Innovation Awards!
Yumiko Wilkey Zenith Global commercial group insight manager
This year I am delighted to be sitting on the judging panel of the World Dairy Innovation Awards for the first time, and very much look forward to seeing the latest innovations of the dairy industry! I am particularly interested in the originality and simplicity of the product’s concept. There are so many new products launched every day and yet some are more interesting than others. Personally it is often the first impression that counts when it comes to spotting a new product in store. It does not have to be distinctively different but yet does it have that ‘it factor’ which stands out from the rest? Also, is the product’s concept communicated clearly and simply? Increasingly consumers are influenced by the brand story behind the product.
Secondly, the health and wellness trend has had a great impact on the food and beverage industry as a whole and dairy is no exception. Consumers are now educating themselves via social media on functional ingredients and how best to use them. Therefore I will be looking at how well the product is responding to these consumer needs and in what ways.
Next up is authenticity and transparency of the product as consumers today are becoming more interested in the ethical practice of manufacturers. Buying from ethically clued-up companies automatically gives these ‘conscious’ consumers a feel-good factor by buying and this is an important aspect of the product identity.
Lastly, the use of social media has become so powerful today. It now takes a lot more than just on-pack messages to grab consumer’s attention and I would be interested to learn about the style of marketing for each product.
Jaco Pieper Koupe founder
I believe that developing healthy, super tasty food can be achieved without making compromises. For the World Dairy Innovations Awards 2017 I am looking for excellence in:
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