Things have got to change

Dutch State Secretary Martijn van Dam (Economic Affairs) recently presented the priorities of the Dutch EU presidency in relation to agriculture and fisheries. This revolves around the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) based on the motto ‘Food of the Future – the Future of Food’.

Making decisions about the future of food is no easy matter…there are major issues that demand attention – and solutions: food waste, the challenge of feeding the global populations, the matter of sustainability. European politicians recently put their heads together in Amsterdam. They were pretty much unanimous about one thing: the food system needs to be overhauled! Less salt, fat and sugar in food products – they really got down to the nitty-gritty. Of course, we’ve known for years that the health aspects could and should be improved, and I’m sure that certain steps are being taken. But let’s be honest: it’s also a matter of wait and see to some extent. ‘If they aren’t making changes, then neither will I. I might end up losing my competitive edge and today’s pampered consumers aren’t prepared to pay extra for it anyhow.’ I can perfectly understand that. So that’s the situation from a product-related perspective.

But there are other factors too: digitisation is turning the world upside down. Our (historically evolved and traditionally fairly conservative) food chain is being shaken to the foundations! Everything is changing – from the way arable, livestock and fish farming is organised to the production, logistics and sale of end products. No link in the chain can escape the ‘Dance of Disruption’.

The relentless growth of the internet presents information in a radically different way than we are used to. But that’s not all. The digital revolution is also creating an urgent need for different types of food packaging. Products must not only change on the inside, but also on the outside – the packaging must become lighter, more compact, more robust. It must include a method to keep the product chilled or some kind of technological gadget that indicates how long the product remains safe to eat. In the meantime, Sir Sustainability taps you on the shoulder to ask if you’d care to dance: could you also make it biobased and recyclable? And Lady Law is no longer waiting on the sidelines. Instead, she waltzes around the floor impeccably, demanding more information on the packaging. Lengthy missives now have to fit onto that label somehow. And Mr Marketing is becoming impatient too: people buy with their eyes!

I can’t wait to see what Empack has in store for us. May I have this dance?!

Judith Witte
 
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