On March 20th the NF4-team visited the Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network, in Chicago, IL, as part of the USA Innovation Mission. During an interactive session the 13 participating SMEs provided a pitch on their company and product(s). The NF4 activities were also presented and explained. Please find below a brief summary of the event as described by Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network Written by Tabetha Hawkins, Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network

On Wednesday, March 20 the Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network (CFBN) hosted a lively breakfast with New Frontiers in Food (NF4) – a collaborative group of European delegations whose mission is to provide an inclusive platform for food innovation, growth and collaboration amongst emerging food, and food tech start-ups. New Frontiers in Food is comprised of European Union representatives and companies, including the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Spain.

Jeroen Wouters, from the Netherlands delegation, kicked off the event by sharing insights into the mission of the organization, and the changing landscape of food tech in the European Union. He then moderated a quick overview of the 13 European start-up businesses on-site, giving a bit of background behind their involvement in the cluster.

To close, a representative from each European start-up presented the audience with a 1-minute pitch outlining their food innovation or food tech. Those in attendance were given a description of their unique products, as well as an overview of where they stood in product production.

The representatives were very transparent and shared the areas of their businesses needing some assistance – whether that be finding a US distributor, packaging or ingredient testing.

Following the presentation, CFBN re-opened networking with the entrepreneurs who were stationed around the room with their products. The audience then had the opportunity to ask questions, and even sample some of the products. The event was an engaging way to learn about food innovation from other countries. We would like to thank Foodvalley NL for their support and New Frontiers in Food for helping to put on a great event.