FoodTech addresses the food industry's water challenges

22 May 2024

• 3D Printing Technology
• Work environment and clothing
• Focus on sustainability
• Food Lab
• Trade publications/media
• Professional organizations
• Food Packaging
• Food Processing
• Research institutes
• Hygienic and food safety
• Ingredients and additives
• IT and Data
• Educational institutions
• Water and Energy

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Water consumption and water management are among the food industry's biggest challenges, which is why FoodTech focuses on water with the theme Water & Energy and the IFC Water Congress conference. FoodTech, the unifying destination for the food technology of the future, will take place from 1-3 October 2024 at MCH Messecenter Herning, Denmark.

According to Søren Nøhr Bak, Senior Expertise Director, Water & Sustainability, at NIRAS, the food industry's challenges with water consumption can be divided into three groups: the legislative in relation to accessing water and discharging wastewater, the economic in relation to increasing costs and finally the societal in relation to the outside world's expectations that companies are aware of their responsibility in terms of sustainability. These challenges are among the reasons why FoodTech is zooming in on water consumption in the food industry and exploring future solutions in the area of Water & Energy - within Food Technology and on the IFC Water Congress.

- The solutions must be seen both inside the boundaries, where companies must consider their water, energy and resource efficiency, and outside the boundaries, where the impact of the aquatic environment must be understood so that companies can consider their own impact and risk to the business, for example in connection with drought and flooding. Furthermore, companies must look at water in their value chain, again from a risk perspective, as well as the desire to build solid supply chains, Søren Nøhr Bak points out.

He goes on to explain that the challenges are generally increasing and that this is reflected in the fact that financial institutions and investors are paying more attention to the companies' efforts in relation to water and sustainability. This is seen as an indication that investments are sustainable and therefore profitable in the long term. And with all this in mind, he considers it extremely important that FoodTech thoroughly illuminates the challenges related to water in the food industry.

- FoodTech is a unique opportunity to relate to all these issues because it is in the meeting between people that new ideas and perspectives arise. Food companies, consultants and technology suppliers meet at the trade fair, and through curiosity, transparency and dialogue, ideas for solutions that can be implemented in everyday life tend to emerge, Søren Nøhr Bak explains.

These views are also recognised by the international environmental company Krüger, one of the exhibitors in the Water & Energy area. Krüger also sees a great advantage in the fact that the area brings together relevant players, not least for the purpose of knowledge sharing.

- We expect to expand our network with customers who are committed to the green transition. Hopefully, we can assist in spreading our know-how and sustainable technologies within water savings and energy optimisations and thus also CO2 reductions as a natural consequence, says Regin Andersen, Sales Manager at Krüger.

Water conference with three tracks
At the three-day IFC Water Congress, visitors can dive into the three tracks 'The Water & Energy Nexus', 'Circularity and Solutions' and 'From financing to final project', all featuring presentations from leading experts.

- At the congress, solutions for improving the efficiency of water and energy consumption will be presented, water recycling will be explored in depth, and the money flows for water projects will be analysed from financing to trustworthy reporting. The speakers come from universities, knowledge institutions and leading food companies, and they will all contribute a broad perspective on the issues, Søren Nøhr Bak says.

The conference will feature speakers from NIRAS, Danske Bank, Novonesis, Danish Crown and Grundfos, among others. In addition, participants at the IFC Water Congress will get a first-hand impression of concrete solutions with company visits to Carlsberg and KMC.

In addition to the IFC Water Congress, visitors can look forward to presentations on water, energy and sustainability at the Water & Energy Stage, which features an interesting programme created in collaboration with Denmark's international climate centre, Klimatorium. The presentations are complemented by guided tours at the trade fair, where visitors will have the opportunity to get hands-on introductions to the solutions presented.

While Mejeriforum is a partner at IFC Water Congress, the partners at Water & Energy - within Food Technology include Mejeriforum, Danish Export, Danish Technological Institute, NIRAS, DI Vand and Klimatorium.

FoodTech will take place on 1-3 October 2024 at MCH Messecenter Herning, Denmark. Read more at uk.foodtech.dk, where the programme for IFC Water Congress will be published soon.