The aisles of the IFT FIRST expo hall were a jarring contrast to what’s actually happening in grocery store aisles, where the current generation of plant-based meat analogues is experiencing declining sales even as prices are being cut.

Managers seeking to fill a job opening in the current competitive environment need to remember that market conditions have changed over the past two years and traditional hiring approaches don’t necessarily apply. Recruiters have some advice.

Soy researcher Mark Messina shares his thoughts on the ways in which the NOVA food classification system paints plant-based meat and dairy alternatives in an unfavorable light.

The authors reflect on the importance of bringing together indigenous knowledge and Western science, including in product development.

A look at the IFT FIRST Expo in pictures.

Featured session panel highlights the achievements of Seeding the Future Global Food System Challenge.

Representatives from 26 startups participated in IFT’s pitch competition to find the best startup.

Panelists in a multi-session conversation at IFT FIRST described types of food fraud seen in the industry and how companies can protect themselves.

Evette Cordy detailed the importance of curiosity in both individual and professional development and coached IFT FIRST attendees on assessing and cultivating their curiosity skills.

Despite inflation and recession fears, investors are still putting money into food companies explained panelists at Tuesday afternoon’s Business FIRST session.

Speakers at an IFT FIRST multi-session conversation on Tuesday agreed that food scientists have myriad points of influence to drive food and packaging companies’ commitment to sustainability.

Supply chain and transportation issues caused by COVID-19 are creating food safety risks for food companies and retailers, panelists told IFT FIRST attendees in a Tuesday featured session.

Helping consumers get comfortable with cellular-based meat requires understanding their moral values.

Business FIRST panelists analyze the domino effect of food system challenges on product development.

A panel of experts from startups, academia, and non-profits shared insights, trends, and groundbreaking solutions to the global food loss and waste challenge.

NASA panel explores challenges of space food development and highlights cutting-edge research breakthroughs with the potential to benefit earthbound consumers.

In Monday afternoon’s Business FIRST session, four food science entrepreneurs shared their experiences in building products and businesses from their passion, creativity, and discoveries.

To convince consumers that food tech innovation initiatives are beneficial, food scientists need to come out from behind their curtain of academic degrees and other professional accomplishments to make a gut-level connection and meet consumers where they are.

In day one's keynote, four experts faced off in a lively debate surrounding the topic of processed foods.

When it comes to diversity, equity, and inclusion, actions speak louder than words, according to the panelists who participated in a Business FIRST session on the first day of IFT FIRST.

Consumers’ environmental awareness and interest in next-generation plant-based foods are among the year’s defining trends, the research firm reports.

Members of IFT’s Food & Nutrition Security Steering Committee highlight some of the challenges and solutions they are exploring in an effort to help achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Food manufacturers face a host of challenges in the current recruiting and hiring environment, including remote work.

Innovative ingredients and culinary science will come together in Cooking Up Science demonstrations conducted by professional chefs representing four ingredient companies at the IFT FIRST food expo on Monday and Tuesday.

Back for its fifth year, the IFTSA Smart Snacks for Kids Competition challenges students to develop a fun and nutritious food or beverage product targeted at kids and/or teens.

Now in its 32nd year, the IFTSA & Mars Product Development Competition requires student teams to develop a new food product and take it from concept stage through production and marketing, in the same way that a commercial product development team would.

This year, students competing in the Developing Solutions for Developing Countries have been asked to create a shelf-stable yogurt beverage without a kill step in production that contains live and active cultures.

Nutrition consultant Linn Steward explains why she thinks some aspects of the NOVA food classification system have value despite the system’s limitations.

As he prepares to celebrate his 100th birthday, past IFT president and former General Foods executive Al Clausi reflects on his career in food science.

We all have a substance circulating in our blood that appears to have great importance for our long-term health outcomes and life expectancy. Unfortunately, most people have never heard about it and little attention is paid to it.

Despite inflation and supply chain turmoil across the food system, Wells Fargo’s chief agricultural economist sees hope on the horizon.

IFT’s Global Food Traceability Center and the World Wildlife Federation-Philippines teamed up to study barriers to implementing digital traceability systems in small fisheries in the Philippines.

The NOVA food classification system condemns 60% of the U.S. food supply. Is this approach valuable and appropriate? Dire warnings to avoid processed foods no longer grace the internet. Turns out, processed foods are not so bad after all.

A look at the myriad factors contributing to post-harvest food waste in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A look at the impact climate change is having on agriculture and how scientists and entrepreneurs are finding solutions.

Throughout COP 26's climate talks, we rarely heard mention of the industry responsible for producing more than one-third of global methane emissions: animal agriculture. Forget the elephant in the room: It’s the cow in the room everyone has decided to ignore.

Creative restaurateurs are tapping into culinary innovation and cultivating off-premises capabilities, making the best of a challenging market situation—and managing to offer grocery retailers some competition.

Food science leadership boards got their start in the early 1990s, envisioned as a way to offer more feedback to food science programs. These boards potentially can provide a number of vital benefits to students, faculty, staff, and the university at large.

In recent years, there has been increased concern of cultural appropriation in innovation across all industries. Therefore, how can the food industry innovate and feed the world better without cultural appropriation?

A reduction in food loss and waste will not only help conserve precious natural resources and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, it will also help strengthen global food security and improve access to nutrition for vulnerable populations.

Recent research identifies cocoa honey’s potential to provide a nutritional food to help meet food security and improved nutrition. Here's a list of resources to learn more.

The editors at Food Technology magazine, published by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), have announced their predictions for the hottest food trends for 2022.

While canning is commonplace today, for that generation of food technologists it was a paradigmatic example of the power of science to change food for the better.

In October 2021, the FDA released new voluntary guidance on sodium reduction with the overarching goal of reducing consumption by 12% over the next two-and-a-half years.

What changes have occurred in the way Canadians perceive cannabis since it was legalized there in 2018? How do Canadian and U.S. consumers of cannabis and edibles compare?

Higher food prices aren’t going away anytime soon given the array of interrelated factors that has led to inflation in both the category and the economy in general.

Researchers at Nanyang Technological University’s have developed technology to extract cellulose from durian husks to make hydrogel bandages and food packaging film.

Celebrated research biochemist and IFT Fellow Louise Slade passed away on October 7. Slade was widely recognized for pioneering a new approach to biochemistry, called food polymer science. 

Startup Chinova Bioworks recently partnered with the College Communautaire du Nouveau Brunswick (CCNB) in Canada to develop a processing aid for vegan-friendly beers.

After reading the Food Technology article “Beyond Ransomware” you may be inspired to take a deeper dive on the topic of cyberbiosecurity. Here is a curated list of resources to help you learn more and take action.

What if you could produce coffee in a lab using fewer resources and without the need for land? Researchers at VTT in Finland have done just that using cellular agriculture.

The COVID-19 virus sparked an acute health crisis, with near miracle accomplishments to develop vaccines in a year’s time, and national resolve to stem its devastation. But America’s existing obesity epidemic-pandemic (O E-P) is an enduring, chronic health crisis.

SnapDNA, creator of a rapid pathogen detection system for food processing facilities, clinched top honors and a $25,000 prize as the winner of the IFTNEXT Food Disruption Challenge™ Pitch Competition, held Wednesday during the FIRST virtual event.

Values-based marketing and two-way dialogue will become essential tools for CPG brands to engage with an increasingly informed, opinionated—and often conflicted—consumer base, a duo of marketing and consumer behavior experts told FIRST attendees on Wednesday.

A panel of investors told FIRST attendees Tuesday that capital markets still have a hearty and unsated appetite for food and agtech innovators.

In a FIRST session on local solutions to global challenges on Tuesday, three very humble experts on food, nutrition, and agriculture challenged the audience to flip that thought process and seize the opportunity to learn at the grassroots level from members of indigenous communities.

Lisa Dyson, CEO of Air Protein, took FIRST attendees on a ride back to the future with her keynote presentation, “Rising to the Challenge,” which outlined how a century-old technology can be reimagined to meet the 21st century challenge of feeding a growing planet.

Since flavor is the No. 1 factor in consumer buying decisions, it’s no wonder that FIRST exhibitors are responding with a creative array of novel and throwback flavor options suitable for a spectrum of food and beverage products.

FIRST session “Taste and Health: Key Consumer Drivers Behind the Growth of Plant-Based Fermented Beverages”

FIRST session “Blended Meat and Meat Analogues: Is the Market Ready?"

FIRST session “Agriculture Innovations Driving the Future of Food Stability”

FIRST session “The Food ‘X’ Factor"

To naysayers who doubt that zero hunger goals are realistic and achievable, Ertharin Cousin counters with a simple, direct question: If China can do it, why can’t everyone?

At FIRST, several exhibitors are making headway in the upcycled space with new ingredient developments that fill a growing niche.

Donna Rosa and the panelists for the FIRST panel discussion “Food for Good—Making a Difference in Developing Countries” have a common mission and shared commitment that closely aligns with the “Zero Hunger” theme of the IFT virtual event.

As some regions begin their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, expect that accelerated pace of CPG innovation and growth to continue, a panel of trend watchers told FIRST attendees Monday.

The COVID-19 pandemic plunged millions further into food insecurity, but it also brought issues to the forefront that may help advance the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of “Zero Hunger,” agreed chief science officers who gathered on Monday for a roundtable discussion during the FIRST virtual event.

FIRST session “Paving the Way for More Sustainable Food Systems Through Packaging Strategies: Are we there yet?”

FIRST session “Harnessing New Technologies in Agriculture to Support a Sustainable Food System”

Food scientists, ingredient suppliers, and consumer-facing companies are mining a vast array of tools, including traditional methods such as enzyme technology and fermentation, and more recent advances, like gene editing, to lower the environmental impact and improve the taste and nutritional value of food.

FIRST session “The Global Demand for Protein and the Rise of Flexitarians"

FIRST session "Tackling the Food Waste Crisis: Unique Perspectives on Sustainability and Effective Ways for Helping Consumers to Reduce Their Food Waste"

FIRST session "Your New Food Venture Needs $$—What Now?"

FIRST session "Consumer Behavior During COVID: Immediate and Lasting Effects in Grocery and Food Service Trends"

FIRST session "The Role of Insect Proteins for Nutrition, Environment and Artificial Intelligence"

FIRST session “I Feel Good so it Tastes Good.”

FIRST Session "Inside the High-Protein Trend: Competition, Health Ties, and Consequences … What Do Consumers Really Want?"

As the number of U.S. consumers vaccinated against COVID-19 increases, some pandemic-driven behaviors are changing while others persist.

After reading the Food Technology article “Unlocking Your Potential” you may be inspired to take a deeper dive on the topic of career growth. Here is a curated list of resources to help you learn more and take action.

How can we best communicate food science to the general public? It is a question that has haunted me. We have a message to tell. We adhere to basic principles that largely contradict much of what we read about food in the media.

After reading the Food Technology article “Can Science Delivery Zero Hunger?” you may be inspired to take a deeper dive on the topic of food security. Here is a curated list of resources to help you learn more and take action.

At IFT's “Time to Kick Start Healthy Eating” virtual meeting, Lynn Dornblaser, Director of Innovation & Insights at Mintel, explained that the COVID-19 pandemic underlined consumers' need to optimize health, especially immunity.

Getting consumers to make healthier food choices is all about winning their trust. It’s not about showing them everything they’re currently doing wrong or the mistaken ideas they have.