In “Shaping the Future of Food Manufacturing,” Professor Jason R. Stokes from The University of Queensland explores the transformative trends and technologies in the food and beverage (F&B) industry. With over 25 years of experience, including a decade in R&D with Unilever, Professor Stokes highlights the industry’s response to consumer demands for health, sustainability and premium products.
Key drivers include reducing undesirable components like sugar and fat while enhancing beneficial ones such as proteins and plant-based foods.
The talk emphasises the role of advanced and emerging technologies, including AI, circular economy principles and precision fermentation, in revolutionising food manufacturing. Professor Stokes highlights strategies for combating the challenges facing industry in processing and developing food and beverages with consideration for sustainability and health. Premium products must deliver benefits to the consumer, and sustainability and health promises must be combined with acceptable organoleptic properties.
Professor Stokes highlights how processing methods like extrusion can be used to transform agricultural materials into premium products, and the role of explicitly understanding how ingredients function contributes to design of consumer acceptable products. He considers advances being made to understand implications of food structure on health through knowledge of the digestive pathway and microbiome.
The presentation also underscores the value of academic-industry partnerships in fostering innovation and growth. By leveraging global collaborations and support mechanisms, Australian F&B companies can scale and thrive internationally. Professor Stokes advocates for open, collaborative innovation and multidisciplinary recruitment to tackle industry challenges, ultimately shaping the future of food manufacturing through co-created solutions and cutting-edge research.