Next Bite 2025: What It Really Takes To Build Healthier Lives

Hosted by Matt Eastland, this episode explores EIT Food’s core mission of creating healthier lives through food, featuring innovators from across Europe. Recorded live at Next Bite 2025 in Brussels, Matt captures a wave of optimism about new technologies, dietary diversity, and collaboration across science, policy, and business.

Guests:

Dean and Pericle – Founders of the Protein Diversification Academy, discuss the global potential of alternative proteins to reduce emissions, antibiotic resistance, and land use while creating 10 million jobs globally by 2050, including 250,000 in Germany. They stress the urgent need for education and scale-up infrastructure, citing their own course that drew 340 applicants for 30 seats, and call for more public investment to de-risk innovation.

Olivier Tomat (Genopole) champions precision fermentation, cultivated meat, and molecular farming, urging Europe to stay bold in pushing these frontier technologies.

Deniz Ficicioglu (Wunderfish) shares how the market for seaweed-based ingredients has shifted from niche to mainstream, driven by clean-label demand and vulnerable land-based supply chains. She calls for bravery in business models, suggesting companies rethink short-term profits to prioritise long-term system change.

Krzysztof Klincewicz (University of Warsaw, EIT Food Consumer Engagement Labs) underlines the power of co-creation between consumers and producers. His team’s collaborations with over 60 companies have led to tangible innovations, such as tooth-safe granola for elderly consumers in Lithuania and functional dairy-based drinks for busy professionals in Poland.

Zagorka Blazevska (Food Innovation Expert) argues that personalised nutrition and reformulation—reducing sugar, salt, and fats—are key to fighting non-communicable diseases like obesity and cardiovascular illness. She highlights the need for trust between innovators and policymakers to accelerate healthy innovation.

Pete Russell (Founder, Ooooby) advocates for localised food systems, connecting small farms directly with consumers. His model delivers food often harvested the same day, reducing cost and boosting nutrient density, while tackling the barriers of price, convenience, and awareness.

Key Takeaways:

Alternative proteins target several problems at once

You hear how cultivated meat and other alternative proteins can reduce antibiotic use, cut climate impacts, and lower intake of harmful fats, while still giving people familiar dishes.

Seaweed and new ingredients can support both health and oceans

Seaweed-based fish alternatives offer marine nutrients with less pressure on wild stocks. If you work in product development, seaweed is a serious ingredient to explore, not a niche garnish.

Co-creation with seniors works

Engaging older consumers directly led to products like reduced-sugar jam and functional drinks that sell in real markets. If your target audience is over 60, you should involve them in design, not only in late-stage testing.

Personalised diets are becoming essential, not optional

Ageing populations and diverse health needs mean “one size fits all” dietary advice will fail. You should expect more tailored nutrition services, smart labels, and tools that adapt to your body and health status.

Skills and education are a bottleneck

There is strong demand for training in alternative proteins. Programmes like The Protein Diversification Academy show how you can build careers in this space, but they also highlight how far education systems have to go.

Trust is the foundation for any new food technology

If you want consumers to try cultivated meat or precision-fermented products, you need to earn trust. That means transparent processes, credible oversight, and clear communication, not hype.

Labels and claims need to be honest and simple

Buzzwords such as “natural” or “clean label” confuse more than they help. You will need to explain what is in a product, how it is made, and why it is safe, in language an ordinary shopper can read in a few seconds.

Taste, price, and convenience still win the day

No matter how sustainable or healthy a product is, people will only buy it if it tastes good, fits their routine, and does not feel like a luxury. If you are working on healthier products, you should measure yourself against the best conventional options on these basics.

Local food networks can support healthier habits

Shorter supply chains, local hubs, and convenient delivery can make it easier for you to cook and eat nutritious food. Infrastructure and business models that reduce time between farm and plate are as important as new ingredients.

Closing Thought:

Across all interviews, one theme stands out: diversification. Whether through technology, protein sources, or local networks, a healthier future depends on giving consumers more choice, more trust, and better access to sustainable, nutritious food