NX-Food, which stands for Next Generation Food, advises its clients on the implementation of innovation processes, sustainable food concepts, technology and product innovations as well as corporate venturing activities.
“We have accompanied a number of food product launches including Beyond Meat, Moving Mountains, Impossible Foods and TiNDLE”
We spoke with Frank Anders, Head of Strategy & Financial Planning, who told us all about how a chef can act as a “quality gatekeeper” and explains to us the Gastronomy First approach.
Frank, you work with the Food innovation consultancy NX-Food which launched its Whitepaper “Gastronomy First – 5 Reasons to launch food innovations with culinary experts” today. What is this approach?
The “Gastronomy First” approach is a go-to-market strategy for new food products and brands.
How does this approach work?
Toni Petersson, CEO of Oatly said: “The volume is sold in retail, but the demand is created in the cafés.” That’s the approach in a nutshell: creating product awareness with end consumers in gastronomy. Shelf space in retail is limited and due to the high dynamics in the food innovation sector, a lot of newcomers struggle to be or stay listed. There are several ways to mitigate this challenge, but looking at cases like Impossible Foods or Oatly, with our whitepaper we want to highlight a specific route to success: gastronomy. Both companies worked with gastronomy and its reach into specific target groups to create positive first impressions with their brands. Triggered by these positive experiences, consumers wanted to buy their products in supermarkets as well.
“Gastronomy can respond accordingly when embracing food innovation.”
How can the Gastronomy First approach be the route to success?
We see five reasons to launch food innovations with culinary experts: firstly, for your new product, the chef can act as a quality gatekeeper telling you whether your product is ready to be sold. Secondly, a chef can be the manager of first impressions, creating positive experiences with consumers. Thirdly, a chef is a “skillfluencer” – a skilled influencer, someone who has earned “culinary credibility” among peers and who shines this light on your product.
Number four – and building on the latter: a chef always is a storyteller and his story will partially be transferred to your product when collaborating. And lastly, a chef is a valuable sparring partner when building a stable supply chain in terms of pricing, product quantity and quality.
Why should a chef participate?
We see several benefits for them: innovations, for one, help chefs stay interesting to consumers. This can be the edge over the competition. Secondly, there is a consumer shift regarding food. We see an increasing demand for food attributing to the health of consumers and the planet. Gastronomy can respond accordingly when embracing food innovation. And lastly, both points might lead to new or more frequent customer visits, resulting in additional sales.
How did you come up with the approach?
With NX-Food we have accompanied a number of food product launches in different markets from Europe to Asia with the international wholesale specialist METRO over the years, including plant-based meat alternatives from Beyond Meat in the stores, Moving Mountains directly via gastronomy, or Impossible Foods and TiNDLE with premium food service distributor Classic Fine Foods.
Based on these experiences, observations and interviews with chefs, experts and brands we decided to showcase the promising “Gastronomy First” approach.
Click here for information on the launch event on 9th June 2021.
More information about NX-Food at www.nx-food.com.
To contact Frank Anders, Head of Strategy & Financial Planning – email [email protected] or call +49 151 151 11 548
