Packaging is an important part of Diageo’s business, and like many global FMCG companies, it wants to transition to a world where high-quality, affordable packaging that is sustainable becomes the standard.

We speak to Diageo about their approach to packaging, which aims to prioritise action that delivers benefits in terms of carbon savings and cost reduction by trialling new innovative formats and materials.

Greenwashing, the act of a brand or business overstating or providing misleading positive environmental claims, has grown in recent years as companies try to attract green-conscious consumers towards their products. Whether accidental or purposefully, the act is fraught with many problems for all parties up and down the supply chain. In this session, Green Economy technical lead Alasdair Dalzel-Job discusses how to spot and how to stop greenwashing.

More plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050? That’s where we’re headed if we don’t rethink packaging with the circular economy in mind. Luckily, as single-use plastic falls out of favour, alternative solutions are coming to the fore. Making a difference is no mean feat, with innovations needing to be eco-friendly, widely accepted and make good business sense. Join us as we unwrap the complexities of sustainable packaging.

Chair: Donna Eastlake, Deputy Editor, Food-Navigator Europe 

So-called hybrid products promise so much. By blending real meat or dairy with plant ingredients, animal-based products can instantly win a lower carbon footprint and improve nutritional profiles. But despite all these gains, innovation in meat and dairy hybrids remains low, and historic hybrid products have failed to resonate with consumers. Does the hybrid proposition still have legs?

Oils and fats are essential ingredients, boosting the taste, texture, and even the appearance of food products. But how tropical oils and animal fats are sourced regularly comes under scrutiny. Can novel technologies help alleviate deforestation and animal welfare concerns? We meet three innovators, each presenting on how they are rethinking oil and fat production in the lab.

On the hunt for more protein with fewer greenhouse gas emissions? That’s what led the FoodNavigator team to England’s first insect restaurant, Yum Bug. But what exactly makes crickets a healthy and sustainable food source? And is the co-founders’ ambition of democratising insect consumption paying off? Join us as we quiz Aaron Thomas and Leo Taylor on all things creepy crawlies.

Can Plants Really Grow Animal Proteins? Genetic Engineering of Meat Proteins in Food Crops Buoyed by consumer concerns over climate, strained meat production as well as animal welfare, the need to produce animal proteins from new sources continues to grow. In this session, Amit Dhingra, Moolec’s Chief Science Officer, shares how the company is producing ‘meat’ from plants.

New proteins promise so much: lower carbon emissions, good quality nutrition, and improved animal welfare. But if this is all true, why is global uptake so slow? We unpick the hurdles standing in the way of a true protein transition and ask how to whet consumer appetites for novel ingredients. Are there any learnings to be taken from first-to-market pioneers?

Chair: Nicholas Robinson, Editor, Food-Navigator Europe