Amid major changes in the way food is made and consumed, leaders of Minnesota food companies large and small came together Monday to spark new ideas that balance environmental constraints and increasing expectations from shoppers.
Jeff Harmening, CEO of General Mills, kicked off the inaugural Food, Ag, Ideas Week — an offshoot of the annual Twin Cities Startup Week but specifically focused on food and farming innovation — by drawing points of connection between the company and local innovators.
"Innovation happens at the joints," Harmening said, "Minnesota already has the spirit of collaboration. We just have to develop the form."
While large corporations can offer young companies expertise and experience, a theme of the gathering was that the smaller, nimbler enterprises also have lessons to teach and are the ones that will ensure Minnesota has a place in the future of food.
Farmers, food processors and distributors are trying to meet rising consumer demand for proteins, organics and a clearer picture of how food is farmed and sourced.
All along the food supply chain, producers are concentrating on processes and innovations that sustain the source of food, whether plant or animal, and the environment around it.
Meat, of which Minnetonka-based Cargill is one of the world's largest producers, is one of the main challenges in food sustainability — and an opportunity for innovators. "We need to find new techniques to help feed the world the meat they want but without taxing our natural resources," the company's chief executive, David MacLennan, said.
Harmening leads one of the world's largest food manufacturers, but he said the company has had to learn from the startup community how to adapt and change quickly. When General Mills develops new products, the goal now is to get the idea in front of consumers as quickly as possible so it can avoid a time-intensive, and expensive, flop.