Due to the pandemic-related planning uncertainties, the Way to Future Food (W2FF) Insect Symposium in Kulmbach is postponed to the digital space for the time being.
The W2FF initiative is going to host three digital online workshops for companies dealing with insects in June and July 2021. The aim is to provide insect stakeholders new impulses and to create a fruitful discussion with experts. The topics of the online seminars will be about consumer research, food law as well as sensory and functional aspects of insects.
The program can be found here as PDF.
Thursday, 24. June, 5:00 - 6:30 p.m. (CEST) – Jutta Saumweber: insects and consumer research (in German)
Jutta Saumweber is head of the department for food products at the consumer association Munich. She will present their consumer research on insect-containing products on the german market ("Marktcheck für Insektenhaltige Lebensmittel").
Among the issues discussed will be the lack of allergy labeling, inadmissible nutritional information, and pricing. For a better understanding of possible improvement of the products, there will be an opportunity for discussion and questions.
Thursday, 08. July, 5:00 - 6:30 p.m. (CEST) – Prof. Dr. Kai Purnhagen: Insects and food law (in English)
Kai Purnhagen is fascinated by the potential of novel ways to produce consumer foods. Driven by the requirement to change food systems, he looks into the regulatory challenges surrounding these transformations in the agri-food sector. Insects and their regulatory environment have the potential to play a vital part in this transformation, in particular when we look into alternative protein sources. As holder of the chair of food law at the Campus Kulmbach, University of Bayreuth, he is proud of collaborating with a great team of researchers who share his passion.
In this workshop Kai Purnhagen will introduce the attendees to the basics of the food law with regard to insects. Afterwards, there will be room for discussion.
Thursday, 22. July, 3:00 - 4:30 p.m. (CEST) – Dr. Ofir Benjamin: Sensory and functional aspects of insects (in English)
Dr. Ofir Benjamin is a lecturer and researcher at the food science department at Tel-Hai College, Israel. His research expertise deals with food sensory and food structure.
In the upcoming workshop he is going to present his studies about the topic "Edible Insects - sensory and functional aspects". He examined grasshoppers and honeybee brood in terms of their nutritional values, sensory and functional properties as a result of drying effects and introduced these protein powders in foods like bread and gel pudding.