Shaping the future of food and drink: Healthy, natural and better-for-you trends to star at Food Matters Live

01 Nov 2019 --- With less than three weeks to go before Food Matters Live 2019 serves up the latest trends shaping the future of food and drink, the London trade show will focus on emerging healthy, natural and better-for-you trends and innovations. Big brands and challenger companies will be “rethinking the way we eat today and in the future,” as the show gets underway for the sixth year running.

The two-day event on November 19-20, 2019, is expected to attract more than 15,000 food manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, start-ups, buyers, policymakers, scientists and health professionals. There will be live demonstrations and tasting experiences, industry insiders will look at the latest retail trends, and an awards ceremony will celebrate the best innovations in the food and drink sector.

Showcasing innovation
Throughout Food Matters Live 2019, there will be a focus on the significant new consumer trends and innovations, which are taking the market by storm.

With the vegan market in the UK worth £443 million (US$573 million) in 2018, the new “Plant-Based Pavilion” will bring together the innovative companies who are “rethinking vegan products and ingredient solutions.”

Another significant consumer-driven trend is the growing gut health market. Every year, the UK spends about three-quarters of a billion pounds on probiotic products, designed to boost digestive health. Reflecting this growth is the new “Gut Health” pavilion – which will showcase the challenger companies and big brands who are producing some truly innovative products. 

Moreover, with the UK supplement market set to hit £457 million (US$591 million) by 2021, the “Nutraceutical Showcase,” supported by the UK Council for Responsible Nutrition and sponsored by i-ingredients, features some of the most innovative nutraceuticals on the market today.

With the UK market for healthy, natural and clean-label food and drink worth £100 billion (US$129 billion), Food Matters Live is an opportunity for international businesses looking to get direct access to key UK buyers from across retail, manufacturing and distribution.

Supporting these global businesses and new for 2019 is the dedicated “International Brands Pavilion,” featuring a showcase of healthier and better-for-you brands from around the world. 

Running alongside the “International Brands” pavilion will be a series of educational roundtables hosted by industry insiders. These sessions are designed to give global companies invaluable insight about how to enter and succeed in the UK market.

With innovation at the heart of the trade show, the new “UK Future Brands” pavilion celebrates the companies who have the potential to be the next big thing.

Hundreds of companies entered the “Future Brands” competition, and the winners have been hand-selected by a team of influential buyers as brands of the future with the potential to be the next big thing.  

Winners include the creator of gut-friendly Purpose Bars; Genie Living Drinks, who make live and fermented soft drinks; Ajika, who make a range of hot chilli and spice pastes; Chief Chocolate Officer, which has created chocolate bars matched to your favourite wines; and a variety of free-from convenience food made by Fodilicious.

Judge Olivier Sevenou, a member of the judging panel and R&D Lead for Future-facing and Health and Wellbeing at pladis Global, says the quality of entries showed “how vibrant the UK start-up platform still is.”

"The best entries showcased great innovative thinking looking for first-mover advantage in emerging consumer trends as well as creating clear unique selling points at the core of their propositions.”

"New companies success will likely be built on finding the right partners to help them grow. To be showcased in the UK Future Brand pavilion at Food Matters Live is a great opportunity to gain a high level of visibility with a large range of stakeholders.”

Director of Food Matters Live Briony Mansell-Lewis says it is this level of access to buyers that makes the event unmissable. “Food Matters Live brings together innovators and challenger companies who are reimagining and rethinking products, ingredients and NPD solutions.”

“The UK's most influential buyers know there is no better place to discover the latest healthy, natural and better-for-you innovations and products on the market,” she concludes.

Edited by Elizabeth Green