Attending & Learning about Allergy /Free-From Food Seminars and Free From Eating Out Awards 2015 (at Food Matters LIVE, ExCel, London in November 2015)…

Unusually, there was an extensive Seminar Programme to accompany Food Matters LIVE spread over the three-days of exhibitions with only a handful requiring prior-registration. This meant, when you’re there, you could pop in and see whether it was for you, and stay if it was. The Free From & Allergen Seminars were focused upon “Demand for free-from products continues to grow with retail sales expected to reach over £538 million by 2018, according to Mintel. In these seminars, analysts, industry experts and healthcare professionals will assess the scale of the opportunities and the challenges of meeting the growth in consumer demand. Themes covered include developing free-from products to address multiple allergen exclusions; delivering free-from in public sector foodservice settings and the eating out sector; formulating and marketing free-from for children; developing products with ‘naturally functional’ ingredients and technical innovation to overcome taste and nutrition challenges in free-from product development.”

Future opportunities in an evolving free-from landscape: exploring the main market of “GLUTEN FREE” due to medical reasons (such as Coeliacs) as well as the “other side” of the market (those who choose to go GLUTEN FREE) by Michelle Berriedale-Johnson, Founder and Editor, Foods Matter (Slides are available).

Michelle B J Free From Seminar presentation.

Understanding consumers with food allergy and intolerance: Using research conducted by YouGov, some interesting observations and themes emerging from this survey of 1,400 UK sample by Louise Vacher, Consulting Director, YouGov (Slides Available).

And

Assessing the global landscape for gluten-free food and drink: Presented by Ewa Hudson, Global Head of Health and Wellness Research, Euromonitor International who touched upon global themes and movements. Some interesting graphics and observations on the different markets.

And in the Afternoon, the “Free From Eating Out Awards” 2015 which were presented at Food Matters LIVE event with many recipients attending and awarded by Anthony Worral Thomspson. These awards were launched to raise awareness of the huge opportunities offered by ‘freefrom‘ food within the food service sector now that the new allergen regulations affecting food service have come into force and more categories have been added to reflect this growing market:

A full listing of Highly Commended Suppliers as well as Winners (with LINKS) is included on the “Free From Eating Out Awards” website but here a few of my highlights from the ceremony: