Focus on the Future

Executives from Dairy Queen, General Mills, Kellogg, XanGo and other leading companies from the food and dietary-supplement industries met in Scottsdale, AZ, in mid-January for the Focus on the Future Executive Conference & Retreat, presented by Virgo Publishing, Phoenix.

The education program, co-sponsored by Lesaffre Group and Unigen Pharmaceuticals, expanded this year, with eight more sessions added to the two-day, two-track schedule.

In the food track, product and trend trackers like Packaged Facts, Mintel, Datamonitor, The Hartman Group and the Natural Marketing Institute offered a look at the current state of health and wellness products on the market here and abroad, as well as glimpses of what’s to come, while product-development professionals addressed the balance between assessing risks and generating rewards in the market for functional foods, expected to reach $35.6 billion by 2010.

Functional beverages continue to dominate the marketplace, with “growth rates higher than that of nutritional supplements,” according to David Sprinkle, research director, Packaged Facts, Rockville, MD. Other hot topics included: sodium (said to be the next trans fat); sustainability; energy (beyond caffeinated Gen-X drinks); and cosmeceuticals.

Further, “Consumers are still looking for the Holy Grail in terms of losing weight,” noted William Barrier, Ph.D., vice president of research and development, Dairy Queen, during a session on health and wellness issues.

In another session, Lynn Dornblaser, director, custom solutions group, Mintel International, Chicago, offered attendees recommendations for future product development. “Focus on targeted nutrition,” she said. “Focus on fair trade and sustainability. Consider aging consumers in a subtle, inclusive way. Keep it simple—and remember, taste trumps everything.”

Vanguard Awards for leadership were presented to Whole Foods Market for its commitment to organics, sustainability, local sourcing, corporate responsibility and innovation, and to Elliott Balbert, founder of Natrol, for his efforts to improve public health with dietary supplements via founding the Dietary Supplement Education Alliance (DSEA). Humanitarian Awards were presented to Dannon for its support of the Dannon Institute, and XanGo for its XanGo Goodness campaign. The awards were presented during a dinner sponsored by i.BioCeuticals and Shanghai Freeman Americas.

Throughout the conference, participants enjoyed myriad networking events, including a golf outing, sponsored by Deerland Enzymes, and a welcome reception, sponsored by National Enzyme Co. Continental breakfasts throughout the conference were sponsored by Paragon Laboratories and Embria Health Sciences. Evening happy hours and roundtables were sponsored by E.T. Horn and HerbaKraft. Kyowa Hakko sponsored the all-day coffee and water stations. Wednesday’s lunch was sponsored by Sabinsa, while Thursday’s lunch was sponsored by Lonza. On Wednesday evening, Casino Night was sponsored by ZMC-USA and The George Uhe Co. The lively dessert reception and karaoke was sponsored by Proprietary Nutritionals and INSIDER.
—The Editors