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Dutch Agri Food Week 2016: Get to know your food

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June 21, 2016

The Dutch agrifood sector will be opening its doors from 12 to 25 October.

As part of the event, the following activities will be taking place throughout the Netherlands:

  • Innovation tours for foreign companies to Dutch businesses.
  • Innovation Summit and Food Valley Expo.
  • Farmers, growers and the food industry will be welcoming everyone.
  • Healthy Cooking with kids: cookery competitions for kids throughout the Netherlands.
  • Virtual food lecture tour.
  • Workshops/ foodfilm festivals / TED-x / business cafes and world readings.
  • Veggie chips, hi-fibre burgers, 3D-printed food, vitamin coatings, staying young and fit and healthy ageing, precision technology and agricultural drones.

Dutch Agri Food Week is taking place throughout the Netherlands from 12 to 25 October 2016. After a successful first edition in 2015, during the 2016 Dutch Agri Food Week, farmers, businesses in the supply and processing chain, retailers, public bodies and scientists will be demonstrating how they contribute towards safe, healthy and appetising food and what the supply chain must do - from crop to tabletop - in order to achieve this. By literally opening our doors, we can help reinforce the relationship between consumers and their food. Dutch Agri Food Week is for anyone with an interest in food and food innovation, both as a professional and a consumer.

Theme for Dutch Agri Food Week 2016: ‘food and health’

Dutch Agri Food Week aims to promote innovation, exchange know-how and acquaint participants with food production, but more than anything, the event is all about enjoying good, healthy food.
'Food & health' is the theme running throughout the programme for 2016. Discussions and presentations relating to current practices and innovations in the field of nutrition will take place by means of conference sessions, events, innovation tours for businesses, workshops and festivals. Here's just a taste of what's on offer: healthy production of low-salt, low-fat food; the addition of vitamins and minerals to stay healthy into old age and alternatives such as veggie chips and high-fibre burgers and ‘custom-made food’ for all. From scientific research and processing, entrepreneurship and finished products to education for kids.

For and by businesses at home - and abroad

Dutch Agri Food Week will be organising theme-related tours to innovative Dutch businesses for foreign companies, including the Agtech, Personalised Nutrition, Smart Fresh and Dairy & Water Technology Tour. These tours will be visiting businesses such as: Verspillingsfabriek, Keygene, Duijvestijn Tomaten and The Nutrition Alliance Gelderse Vallei. Also on the programme: an Innovation Summit and the follow-up to the Start Up Fest F&A Next for start-ups, investors and businesses. Other examples include the international conferences, such as Food Valley Expo, which is attended annually by hundreds of international businesses, and World Dairy Summit.

For and by everyone

During World Food Day on 16 October, a large-scale festival for the general public is being held in Rotterdam.
Centres of education and knowledge, such as Wageningen University & Research Centre, various universities of applied sciences and secondary agricultural schools, will be offering free virtual lecture tours explaining the facts and fibs about food.
Farmers, growers and food producers throughout the Netherlands will also be throwing their doors open and cookery competitions will be organised for children.

The agrifood sector believes it is important for children to become aware of and learn about food sources at an early age. A healthy lifestyle can't begin soon enough. At various locations throughout the country there are organisations that will be showing children how their food is produced behind the scenes on farms - the ingredients are then prepared to make a wholesome meal which they sit down to eat together. Check these places out: Keukenbazen Kookbattle in the north east of Brabant; Kokkerelli, Kids University for Cooking in the south of the country, in the Helmond region; and Resto VanHarte which has kids restaurants in The Hague, Amsterdam and other places. Kids will be cooking wholesome meals here during the week. To make sure that all children in the Netherlands come into contact with healthy and tasty cooking, on one of the days during Dutch Agri Food Week there will be a national cookery competition for kids.

Programme online

As from today, the full programme will be listed online at www.dutchagrifoodweek.nl. In fact, new events are being added every week.

Collaboration and partners

National partners who are helping to put together the programme and organising events are:
Albert Heijn, FrieslandCampina, LTO Nederland, the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Rabobank, Vion Food, the Healthy Food SME cluster and Wageningen University & Research Centre.

Dutch Agri Food Week is a partnership of approximately 400 businesses and organisations. Farmers, growers and SMEs in the agrifood sector, provincial authorities, local authorities, educational establishments and business clusters will all be working together to make sure the second edition is a success too.

Dutch Agri Food Week is an initiative of the Topsector Agri & Food with Food Valley NL and the agrifood and horticultural regions AgriFood Capital, Greenport Westland – Oostland and Brightlands Greenport Venlo.