Governed by the motto “Creating tomorrow together,” more than 800 decision-makers and partners of the global food and mobility industries attended the second Bühler Networking Days at the company’s head office in Uzwil/Switzerland. The focus was on the question of how in 2050 to feed a global population of almost ten billion people sustainably and healthily.
Bühler‘s second Networking Days took place under the motto “Creating tomorrow together” and provided a forum for manufacturers, industry partners, scientists and start-ups to share ideas and inspire each other, focusing on the key questions: How can a global population of nearly ten billion people in 2050 be fed and helped to fulfill their mobility needs whilst respecting the limits of the planet?
Stefan Scheiber, CEO of Bühler Group, addressed the 800 experts, leaders and professionals from around 500 companies and over 80 countries attending the three-day event: “We are ready to accept the challenge and in fact we are convinced that this is a pathway to building sustainable businesses delivering sustainable solutions. But we are running out of time. This is why we have increased our sustainability goals: our aim is to reduce energy requirements, water consumption, and waste by 50 percent in our customers’ value chains. No business can do this alone. We need widescale collaboration from every sector and part of the world.”
The world faces urgent challenges in the coming decades as climate change and a growing population make many of our current systems of production unsustainable. Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, former prime minister of Norway and former Director General of the World Health Organization WHO, said: “There is no turning back. The need for private sector engagement is stronger than ever. We cannot solve all the challenges without the resources, the expertise, the technology and brain power of business.”
The earth‘s population is predicted to grow to 9.8 billion by 2050, with 70 % living in urban areas. These shifts will put a strain on food and transport systems unless we make fundamental changes. Speaking at the event, Sunny Verghese, Group CEO of Olam International Ltd. and Chair of the World Business Council for Sustain-able Development, underlined the importance of the challenges: “You cannot produce the food, feed, and fiber that all of us need if we destroy the planet,” he said. “There has to be an alternative way to do this on a more sustainable basis. Business as usual will not get us there, so do not accept the status quo.”
The combined potential for change embodied by the businesses present at the Bühler Networking Days is enormous. Together, they feed four billion people and provide mobility for one billion every day – a powerful lever for change. The food of the future could well be grown in a fermentation tank, rather than in the field and ocean. Both, disruptive new companies and incumbents, are investing to address the consumer needs of today and the future. They are developing new technologies using biomanufacturing and digital advances to revolutionize agriculture and increase yields to meet the world‘s nutritional needs within the environmental boundaries.
Actions taken by participants at the Networking Days can have a significant impact. “In this room we have convened people that influence the three most important levers
to make a change to carbon emissions,” said Ian Roberts, Chief Technology Officer of Bühler Group. A third of global CO2 emissions are created by buildings, a third by mobility and a third by agriculture – the major players from each of these sectors were present at Bühler‘s Networking Days 2019.
A theme throughout the event was the power of digitization to help meet these challenges. Ian Roberts explained: “Digitization has changed the world. It allows completely new technical solutions, and changes how we collaborate, communicate, and innovate. It is changing and disrupting our lives and, crucially, can help us to meet our sustainability targets”. Bühler is already leveraging the power of IoT, Artificial Intelligence and big data to enable faster, smarter, better decisions. Bühler Insights, the first cloud platform dedicated to the food and feed industry, is helping to drive up yields, reduce waste, and improve food safety.
