Kerry Group turned dining trends into tomorrow’s F&B innovations at Gulfood Manufacturing 2024

Kerry Group’s recent participation at Gulfood Manufacturing 2024 was an opportunity for the company to highlight its commitment to sustainable food and beverage innovation across the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa (APMEA) regions. Kerry’s strong presence in the region underscores its focus on addressing growing consumer demands for healthier, sustainable, and authentic food experiences across these diverse markets. 

"Our customers are our priority, and our commitment is to bring locally relevant solutions to the regional market and beyond," said Inanc Isik, general manager, Middle East Retail, Kerry. “We believe in global capability, executed locally, as seen in our local insight and team backed by Kerry’s global scientific and operational expertise. Our deep understanding of retail and foodservice channels enhances our ability to partner customers with greater success and makes it easier and more valuable for them to do business with us.” 

Throughout the three-day event, Kerry engaged attendees with product samples in categories such as snacks, bakery, meat, and beverages, showcasing innovative taste and nutrition technologies. These offerings highlight Kerry’s unique position in providing tailored flavors, taste modulation, and nutritional enhancements that support diverse dietary needs without compromising on taste. 

Some creative concepts Gulfood Manufacturing guests sampled included: 

Beverage: Strawberry matcha latte – transferring one of the most popular out-of-home coffee trends to a supermarket ready-to-drink.

Meat: KPopCorn Chicken – Spicy, fermented gochujang and kimchi marinated chicken with an unusual noodle coating that offers consumers a unique crunch and delicious eating experience at home.

Snack: Chili mango madness crisps – marrying bold tastes for an on-the-go snack. 

Bakery: Middle East’s trendiest chocolate in a wafer format with Kerry’s pistachio flavor. 

The Kerry booth buzzed with activity as attendees explored the multisensory VR culinary journey, which told the stories behind the concepts in an immersive experience. Using Kerry’s proprietary Taste Charts, customers co-created product concepts that matched current consumer preferences. Each concept demonstrated Kerry’s ability to translate out-of-home experiences directly to the consumer kitchen, leveraging insights from a team of over 1,100 food scientists worldwide. 

A highlight of Kerry’s participation was group chief executive officer Edmond Scanlon’s keynote at the FoodTech Summit’s chief executive officer Corner panel, where he talked about the power of partnerships across the supply chain from farmers, suppliers, food manufacturers to regulators, to reformulate or formulate products with less salt, fat or sugar without compromising on taste to bring sustainable nutrition to 2 billion people by 2030. The discussion covered a wide range of topics, from tackling the challenges of innovation and sustainability, to addressing food waste, and uncovering new opportunities for growth. 

Kerry was also presented with an award win: the Gulfood Manufacturing Industry Excellence Award for "Plant-Based Manufacturing Company of the Decade." This award highlights Kerry’s advanced plant-based solutions, from taste modulation to functionality enhancements, aimed at meeting the demands of plant-based consumers and supporting sustainable diets. 

“We extend our deepest gratitude to all the customers who visited us at Gulfood Manufacturing,” said Inanc Isik. “This year we harnessed human intelligence to capture food and beverage trends based on consumer’s out-of-home experience, visualizing the next big idea, and co-created food and beverage products that consumers want. Kerry will continue to deliver innovative food solutions that combine balanced nutrition and authentic taste, through research and development. We look forward to shaping the future of food and beverage in this region, delivering solutions that enable sustainable nutrition for communities and advancing our shared goals for a healthier, more sustainable future.”