Nordic Talks Japan: Today's Menu: Food innovation systems for the sustainable and safe foods of tomorrow
What is the future of responsible consumption and production of food? Do we need to rethink what we eat and where it comes from? What kind of innovative products and technologies are happening, and what can we do to promote these innovations? What are the roles of government, industry, and consumers? How can Japan and the Nordics be key players in transforming the food systems, minimizing food waste, and increasing the efficiency of production to reduce the impact on our planet?
On May 30th, Nordic Innovation House Tokyo, the 5 Nordic Embassies in Japan, and the Finnish Institute in Japan held a Nordic Talks Japan event to discuss the topic further. The event took place at the UNIVERSITY of CREATIVITY in Akasaka Biz Tower, Tokyo. We had around 60 participants at the venue and 110+ registered to join the discussion online.
Panelists:
Dr. Julius Birgir Kristinsson, Co-founder of ORF-Genetics, Owner and CEO of Silfurgen
Ms. Reetta Andolin, Professor of Practice, Viikki Food Design Factory, University of Helsinki
Mr. Hidenori Kondo, Sustainability Field Director, UNIVERSITY of CREATIVITY
Moderator:
Ms. Megumi Avigail Yoshitomi, Representative Director, Japan Association for Cellular Agriculture (JACA)
Below is a short abstract of the discussion.
Safe Food is Core to Human Survival
To open the event, Ambassador from Norway to Japan H.E. Inga Nyhamer addressed the opening remarks. “Food is so fundamental in our daily lives that it is sometimes overlooked, but it is obvious that access to healthy and safe food is core to human survival. “
She then introduced a couple of early Nordic efforts in food systems: Nordic Kitchen Manifesto (2004) — summarized in ten points on purity, season, ethics, health, sustainability, and quality, and signed by leading Nordic chefs, and Cookbook for Systems Change (2020) — a guide for public sectors, entrepreneurs, and other players for a deliberate food system transformation that can support people, planet, and society.
“Overall, the intersection of food system innovation, food security, and emerging technologies and AI is an exciting and rapidly evolving nexus that has the potential to transform the way we approach food production and distribution in the future. But we need stronger government strategies and initiatives to regulate and encourage further innovation.”
The Protein Crisis
The moderator first asked each speaker about their motivations to be involved in the food systems transformation.
Kristinsson: When I was researching global food production in relation to an R&D project on cell-cultured meat in a company where I was a co-founder, I found out that the cultivation of animal proteins (meat, milk, eggs, and aquaculture fish fed on terrestrial plants) is causing what I call the “protein crisis”. It is causing excessive use of land (50% of the land we use for food cultivation is used for animal proteins, which provide only 18% of the food we consume, and this caused the extinction of thousands of species and a million of them in danger), excessive use of synthetic fertilizers, and global warming (25–30% of the greenhouse gas emission comes from food production, mostly animal farming). The current food system is not sustainable at all and I want to contribute to change it.
Andolin: My drive is biodiversity — there are so many plant-based ingredients that we can utilize for food products. One generation ago, we ate 50% less meat. It is not impossible to make the change.
Kondo: I am working on building a connection between sustainability and creativity, and how to make sustainability a lifestyle. My book published just yesterday called Urban Farming Life suggests a shift to a more sustainable lifestyle for people in Tokyo.
Responsible Consumption Today and in the Future
What does responsible consumption mean today? What will it mean in the future?
Kristinsson: The current global food system is not sustainable at all, especially regarding the production of meat, milk, eggs, and aquaculture fish fed on terrestrial plants. The biggest responsibility that we can take right now is to eat less of these products, especially red meat. It is too early to define what responsible consumption will mean in the future. There are many technologies evolving, and consumers should have the chance to choose. Consumers should have a chance to choose from the same criteria they choose food today — taste, price, and freshness — but not how sustainable they are.
Andolin: First of all, we can’t put all the burden on the consumers. We need a change in the system. For example, if the whole chicken production can be changed into cultured meat, consumers won’t have to do the decision-making. They can simply purchase cultured chicken just like they used to purchase regular chicken. Even small changes in the industry can help consumers think differently and make responsible choices. For example, a restaurant in Helsinki changed the name of their menus from meat main to vegetable main (“roasted vegetable with chicken” instead of “chicken with roasted vegetable” ). If we want to make a system change, there needs to be various measures and efforts continuously going on in the same direction. No one technology or labeling will make the change in value.
Kondo: In Japan, compared to Europe, while food waste reduction has become a big issue, the shift to plant-based food is still very limited. But some fast food chains closer to young consumers are providing vegan menus and are getting attraction. There is a movement to redefine the Japanese way of sustainability, based on how the society was sustainable based on the circular use of materials in the Edo era (1603–1867).
Consumer Reactions to Novel Foods
Are consumers reacting negatively to novel foods?
Kristinsson: In order to stop negative reactions, novel foods must simply become better. We have to make them attractive so that the current system is obsolete. The industry should be open to telling the truth behind the foods they provide, and governments should support the real best solutions. Currently, the most negative response may come from present and future competitors to novel foods, such as farmers.
Kondo: At the moment the high price of novel foods is an issue. Japan has a history of importing so many food cultures (ramen, and curry which are now known as ”Japanese cuisine” all came from overseas and we adopted our own way). The same will happen with plant-based food — if we have enough coming in from outside, we will adopt it our own way and it will become mainstream. Japanese are modest and serious. If the shift happens, everyone will follow.
Involving the Whole Value Chain to Create the Pull from Consumers
How do you see the role of public and private sectors and the importance of collaboration among them?
Kondo: We are working with the Ministry of Economic, Trade, and Industry to create the market not only from the top-down power but by working together with government and industry big players.
Andolin: We are already doing well at attracting the first group of consumers with high consciousness. Now we have to work urgently on how to bring this to the masses. In order to do so, we need a retail system change, and we have to work with the whole retail chain involving as many stakeholders as possible
Kristinsson: Currently, philanthropic investors and governments are the main investors. If we can develop better products that consumers will “pull” at the retail end, then the system won’t have to make much “ push” effort. We simply need better products.
Changing the Way of Luxury
Kondo: One way to change the mindset of the mass could be to redefine luxury messaging. Previously a character in a movie having a big slice of steak was symbolic of luxury. But in the sustainable context, it is not. We can promote a new definition of luxury through celebrities. What kind of food we eat is not only about food, but more of a lifestyle issue.
Nordic-Japan Collaboration Possibilities
Panelists all agreed on a huge possibility of Nordic and Japanese collaboration in building sustainable food systems.
Andolin: Fermentation will have a big role in the future, and Japan’s rich fermentation culture can contribute a lot. Indeed, my first company which developed pulled oats is collaborating with Japan’s Hikari Miso.
Kondo: The Danish Noma coming to Kyoto (May 2023) is one symbolic event. Japan has so many regional foods, and ingredients. Different chefs working on traditional ingredients can be very inspiring. Japanese robotics technology can also be able to provide collaboration opportunities.
We Can All Take Action
How can we all act towards a sustainable food system?
Kristinsson: Reduce food waste and eat less meat. Don’t buy so much food from overseas. Sea transportation produces 100 times less greenhouse gas emissions than flight transportation.
Andolin: Rethink before you eat — “Do I really need this?” Minimalism as a new luxury. Enjoy the taste of various kinds of vegetables.
Kondo: I love meat, but I stopped eating too much meat. My daily lunch is kimchi, natto, and rice. At first I thought it wouldn’t be enough but I got used to it and became much healthier. Another thing I would suggest is to start urban farming. Urban farming is actually not about farming but more about making friends. Urban farming can be the first step in a lifestyle and mind shift.
Sharing Information about Risk is Crucial
During the lively Q&A session, Professor Aiko Hibino of Hirosaki University, Faculty of Humanities Information and Behavior gave her comments.
“My research is on public acceptance of cultured meat and would like to raise 3 points reflecting today’s discussion on the consumer acceptance of novel food. First, almost all new technologies are accepted negatively when they are first introduced. In order to truly judge how it will be accepted or not, we need to wait and see how the discussions elaborate between the consumers and the developers. Second, it is important to utilize cultural aspects/frameworks when introducing new values. In this case, the Japanese traditional mind such as “mottainai” can help. Lastly, sharing information about the risks of the new technologies is crucial to spread new technologies and ideas.”
Immediate Attention Needed to the Imbalanced Food System
Ambassador from Iceland to Japan H.E. Stefán Haukur Jóhannesson made the closing remarks. “Human relation with food is seriously imbalanced. To give a few numbers, 1 in 10 people lack sufficient access to food, and 3 billion people cannot afford a healthy diet. At the same time, we waste ⅓ of the food produced. Immediately attention is needed to secure food for all humanity. The discussion about movies and steaks reminded me of how smoking was seen in almost all movies but eventually outlawed by society. How we dealt with smoking might be a reference when we think about transforming the food system. I definitely see a change in the younger generation — indeed 2 of my children are vegan. As mentioned in the discussion, at the end of the day, consumers should be able to decide what they eat based on taste, nutrition, and price, and I believe Japan and the Nordics have a huge opportunity to become key players in the development of future foods.”
Thank you for reading to the end! You can also follow the whole discussion from the recording below. 日本語レポートはこちらから。
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