Food entrepreneurship conference challenges, inspires participants
March 9, 2016
Mike Lee is the founder and CEO of Studio Industries, a food design and innovation agency.
Lettuce grown in less than a week in converted urban factories. Hamburgers created to order by 3D printers. Milk made in a lab instead of by cows.
Those are just a few of the visions of the future of food 50 years from now, as offered by futurist Mike Lee, keynote speaker at the Food Entrepreneurs: Building Ontario Innovation One Product at a Time conference at Georgian College March 3 and 4.
Lee, founder and CEO of Brooklyn, New York-based Studio Industries, challenged attendees to think far into the future. He offered examples of current real-life research that could lead to trends and changes in the world food system by 2065. Not everything will come to pass, but it’s important for anyone in the food business to look ahead and take advantage of new opportunities, Lee said.
Other existing innovations include large touchscreens in select U.S. supermarkets that allow produce shoppers to speak directly with farmers and distributors to learn more about the food they plan to buy and even to place custom orders. Another innovation is a 24-hour beefsteak vending machine now on trial in France. Both these test projects point toward consumers’ increasing demand for customization and timely interaction with others in the food system, Lee said.
In other seminars, participants learned practical information on overseeing and executing strategy, product idea viability, food safety culture, financing a business and collaborating for growth. A made-in-Ontario showcase featured more than 40 local food vendors and service providers.
Canadian food guru and cookbook author Anita Stewart was emcee of a VIP Tastemaker Dinner March. 3 that honoured winners of the Premier’s Award for Agri-Food Innovation Excellence. Guest chef André Sanche of Midland created the menu. Georgian College culinary students assisted with the preparation.
The conference was offered by the Agri-Food Management Institute in partnership with Georgian College, as well as the County of Simcoe and the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. It is part of Georgian’s ongoing commitment to food entrepreneurship education in Ontario.