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Transforming
food systems

Working together to feed a growing world

Mouths to feed:

*

*Numbers are an approximation

8 billion reasons to change...

and counting. Every second brings more mouths to feed so that by 2050, we’ll be nearly 10 billion people. Our planet is already struggling to keep up. We urgently need to change our food systems to get more from what we have. Biosolutions are one way to do this.

Systems are people,
and people can change

From farm to table, food systems are a complex, interconnected web of people and activities. Over the last few decades, they’ve succeeded in feeding more and more of us. But up to 783 million people still go to bed hungry each night. And climate change, war, resource scarcity and the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic are all challenging food security. At the same time, food systems are driving climate change, biodiversity loss, water pollution and water scarcity. They can also contribute to unhealthy diets.

We urgently need to change our food systems. We need more sustainable, more resilient systems that can supply more – and more nutritious - food for our growing population. The good news is that systems are made up of people, and people can change.

people

Transforming food systems,
from farm to table

Many of us are trying new approaches, whether in food production, processing or consumption. But our complex food systems need holistic approaches to transformation.

Biosolutions are one such approach. Right now, they’re helping to feed our growing population while safeguarding the Earth's resources. They’re tackling both visible and invisible loss and waste across our food systems so we can get the most from every resource. And they’re helping to make more nutritious food available to more people.

Transform model - From farm to table

What are biosolutions?

Biosolutions are powered by enzymes and microbes. Enzymes are proteins that help transform substances throughout nature. Microbes are living organisms such as fungi or bacteria. They make life possible through symbiotic interactions.

We harness microbes and enzymes in our biosolutions for food, beverages and agriculture. Biosolutions help farmers get the most from their crops and livestock while reducing water pollution. They help food processors get more from raw materials and develop climate-friendly protein. And they help consumers reduce the amount of food and plastic packaging they send to landfill.

How biosolutions are helping to transform food systems

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Our waste

Tackling food loss and waste

Getting the most from resources across production, processing and consumption.

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Our planet

Creating food systems for our planet

Feeding our growing population and safeguarding the Earth's resources.

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Let's take transformative action

​​​Let's embrace
innovation

Diversified food systems are resilient food systems. But diversification is impossible without innovation. Today’s government regulation slows development in key areas. In agriculture, the standards derive from a fossil-based and chemical paradigm. With novel foods, there are long and complex approval processes. Right now, the EU’s approval of new biopesticides takes up to 7 years. In the U.S., it takes only 2 years.

We need more aligned approval processes and terminology. Without changes, innovation will not reach the growing populations that are hungry for it.

Zymer in lab doing Innovation

Let's enable
climate-smart farming

Farming is local. Climate, geographies, and crops vary. But no matter where you are, farmers need resilient agricultural practices. From drought to flooding to fires, extreme weather is altering farming.

Biologicals play an important part in the transition to climate-smart farming. But it will also take new skills, types of subsidies and investments. The need only grows for all those people who are on the frontline, struggling to make ends meet.

Farmer harvesting crops

Let's give people
a better choice

People want to make the right food choices for our planet. But we also want great flavor, good nutrition and the right price. That makes sense. Plant-based foods and drinks are a game-changer for the food industry and for the planet. But broad consumer adoption requires innovation, investments and the right regulations.

Biosolutions can help with taste and texture. But it will take concerted action to make plant-based an obvious choice for tonight’s menu.

Boy eating climate-friendly burger made of plant-based meat

Let's incentivize
the green transition

The strain on the climate and global food system is growing. Even so, we keep funding the past, not investing in our future. In 2022, coal, oil and gas received $7 trillion (7% of global GDP) in financial support.

Shifting to green solutions can create $26 trillion more for the world through to 2030. If we green the production and use of energy, it could create 24 million jobs globally by 2030. It would protect the 1.2 billion jobs that rely on a healthy and stable environment. To get there, we need a skilled workforce, incentives to build scale and bold decisions to change policies.

Zymer in production

How biosolutions contribute to the EU Farm to Fork Strategy

The European Union has a strategy called the “Farm to Fork Strategy”. The strategy aims at ensuring healthy, affordable and sustainable food for the population and to maintain and develop competitiveness of food production in the Union.

Biosolutions are used in many processes in the food value chain -  from agriculture to final food products to the benefit of food producers, consumers and society.

This whitepaper demonstrates how biosolutions benefit the European Unions “Farm to Fork Strategy” today and how it can benefit the strategy even more in the future.

farmtofork

Find out about our other two commitments

Woman thinking about the climate

Accelerating towards a climate-neutral society

55 billion tons. That’s the amount of CO2 all of us emit in one year. Together with our customers, we’re lowering emissions in industry and food production. We’re also removing fossil-based ingredients from everyday products and capturing carbon. All to protect the planet we love.

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Man living a healthy life

Enabling healthier lives

In supermarkets and health stores around the world, more and more people are looking for ways to improve their wellbeing and health. Our biosolutions provide supplements for better gut health. They also make lower-sugar, higher-fiber dairy possible. And they lead to healthier baked goods. These are just some of the ways they enable healthier lives.

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Find out why biosolutions are part of the answer to achieving a healthy planet.

Woman holding a fresh vegetable