Food is Sweden’s third largest industry. Despite this, it has a self-sufficiency rate of only 50%. Swedish innovation is a top performer in other industries such as steel, forestry and automotive, but ranks just 14^th for the food industry. These conditions create a need for a common meeting place where innovative and sustainable food production take centre stage. That meeting place is Nordic Food Industry.

The Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre is the trade show organiser with the largest portfolio of industry events in Sweden. And the food industry is an important contributor to many of those events. Something that has laid the foundation for Nordic Food Industry.

— The food industry is in an exciting and challenging position. And Nordic Food Industry is based on close cooperation with key players in the sector, such as RISE, and on feasibility studies that clearly show the need for this event. There is enormous potential and a great need for development in this industry, says Annika Persson, Business Development Manager at the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre.

Food industry momentum

In the light of the recent global crises, Swedish food production has moved centre stage. The need to innovate in production processes and to increase our self-sufficiency is clearer than ever.

— There is a momentum that we need to get behind as a country. There is huge potential in the food industry when it comes to raising production and developing the production process. At Nordic Food Industry, we want to build the bridges that will make this possible, says Annika.

The challenge in the food industry is its fragmentation. It is fragmented geographically, but also in other ways. The industry contains some huge corporate giants, but above all a large number of one-person and small businesses. This further underlines the need for a common meeting place.

— It is important to take a holistic view of the industry. And at Nordic Food Industry, we want to highlight opportunities for change and smart solutions that don’t require huge investments. It is also possible to improve efficiency and innovate with less money, explains Annika.

A focus on processing

Nordic Food Industry focuses on food processing. At the point when raw materials first arrive at the factory, Nordic Food Industry takes over.

— We have looked at how to achieve a sustainable food industry, how to work with smart solutions and automation, robotisation and digitalisation. There are many exciting players in the market who have developed efficient and affordable solutions that can really help the industry boost its production. We need to work on both nutrition and artificial intelligence, chemistry and process engineering, sensory and quality management. At Nordic Food Industry, large and small companies come together to identify opportunities to collaborate and find new, smart technologies for increased growth, says Annika.

With the aim of increasing Sweden’s competitiveness

As mentioned, there is a growing need in Sweden to increase food production. By spreading knowledge about the smart solutions available on the market, we can help companies to produce more food efficiently, and with higher nutritional value and more energy.

— The prerequisites are there and so too is the expertise, we just need to share it better. Many entrepreneurs in the food industry are experts in what they focus on, but now they need help with the technical requirements to increase production in smart ways, says Annika.

At Nordic Food Industry, you can also learn about new cutting-edge technologies that show what the future of food could look like.

— This event showcases the technologies and research of the future. For example, 3D-printed food that can help elderly people eat, or food production based on algae, so-called blue food. These are technologies currently used in other industries that could also be applied to the food industry. We need to look at the best in class and see what we can learn from them, says Annika.

The Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre wants to contribute to increased collaboration within the food industry – between academia, research and industry, suppliers and new tech companies. At Nordic Food Industry 2022, there is an opportunity to increase the level of innovation and benchmark against other industries through smarter distribution, production and methods.