Rik Vera is a futurist, an international keynote speaker and author. In his work, he draws upon years of business experience at C-level in sales and marketing-related functions to discuss customer-centric strategies and change management in light of major digital disruption. He aims to demystify the buzzwords and hypes of the day. Rik has just written his second book: The Guide to the Ecosystem Economy.

‍

In his keynote, he will explain how technology has been re-shaping the customer interaction. He will also explore the new customer, how to engage now and in the future and why B2B and B2C have become P2P (People to Platform). He will also make it clear that the north star building ecosystems is customer centricity.

‍

Dr. Béatrice Denoyes is a senior scientist at National Institute of Agronomical Research (INRA) at Bordeaux. She has worked in the field of genetics and genomics for 30 years. More recently, she focused her work on the flowering/runnering decision in strawberry because this trait is strongly linked to plant (for nursery) and fruit (for growers) yields. Understanding this process through different approaches, including the study of plant architecture, will allow the modulation of the runnering/flowering balance in the cultivated strawberry.

Smartmat is the largest Belgian fresh food e-commerce player in Belgium and the organisation behind brands like Rayon, Canteen, 15gram and the Belgian meal kit Foodbag.

‍

Rayon is the new online supermarket that challenges the established supermarkets with unique brands, top customer experience and next day home delivery in the whole of Belgium.

‍

With 7 years’ experience in grocery market research, he currently manages Kantar’s Produce team in the UK, helping 70+ Produce businesses improve their sales with data-driven insight & recommendations. Joe is passionate about encouraging people to live healthily and love showcasing growth opportunities for Fresh Produce.

Felix Wäckers is Professor at Lancaster University, and since 2009 Director R&D for the Biobest Group, a world leading producer of biological control and pollination solutions.  For over 30 years his research has focused on novel biological strategies for crop protection and crop management. Innovations developed at Biobest include: - a range of new pollinators and biocontrol organisms;

- “Flying Doctors”, a system to utilize bumblebees to disperse microbial antagonists for a more efficient biological control of Botrytis;  

- “Nutrimite”, the first commercially available food supplement to support predatory mites and

- “Pronemite”, the first mite species capable of effectively controlling pathogens.

The title of the break out session is “Why a tiny mite may be the nextbig thing in powdery mildew control”

‍

Moody Soliman is an experienced entrepreneur and startup founder with more than 17 years of experience in the Medical Device, Biotech and AgTech industries. His wide breadth of industry experience spans multiple disciplines including executive leadership, business development, sales, marketing, program management, operational excellence and manufacturing engineering.

At Ryp Labs (formerly known as StixFresh), Moody is leading a highly talented and passionate team, developing and commercializing biomimicry solutions to combat global food waste, naturally and safely. Their technology includes a food-safe and natural sticker that you can simply peel and apply to your fresh produce, or a package of your fresh produce such as strawberries, to double the shelf-life.

Moody earned his M.B.A. with honors from University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management with a focus on entrepreneurship and marketing, complimenting a strong technical background which includes a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.

‍

Ronald Hoek has worked more than 10 years on the energy transition and for the last 8 years on data-driven solutions for the international greenhouse industry. Ronald has broad experience in marketing, product development and data-technology. As the CEO of Blue Radix, he works with partners and his team to enable growers to meet their daily challenge with AI: produce more food and flowers with less resources.

‍

As Head of National Marketing and Business Development, Nico combines the communication and business development of the Smurfit Kappa DACH organisation. With over 20 years of experience within the packaging industry, Nico knows the packaging requirements in different kind of industries very well. His experience also lies in the areas of packaging process automation. The Smurfit Kappa Better Planet Packaging initiative is an integral part of the overall strategy and together with his team he is driving paper-based packaging concepts into a more sustainable future.

Luc Vanoirbeek lives in Zepperen (Belgium), in the middle of the Belgian fruit region. He holds a master degree in political and social sciences and he worked for the Flemish Farmers' Union from 1986 until 2018. He spent the early years of his career as an educator in the movement for young farmers and rural youth. In 1988 he became national chairman of those organizations.

In 1996 he switched to the study department of the Boerenbond as an advisor in social legislation. In that position he took part in the European Social Dialogue in the agricultural and horticultural sector. From 2002 to 2007 he was a fruit cultivation advisor and provincial director of the farmers' union in Limburg, after which he returned to the research department as a horticultural advisor. He then became a European and international adviser for farmers' union to conclude his career in the agricultural organization as spokesman.

Since 2018 he is the general secretary of the association of Belgian horticultural cooperatives(VBT) and chairman of the working party Fruit and vegetables of COPA-Cogeca.

‍

Olivier Paulus is one of the two co-founders of Urban Harvest, responsible for developing the innovation roadmap for their indoor vertical farming systems for strawberries. He has a master’s degree in industrial sciences combined with a post-graduate in entrepreneurial engineering and a master’s in general management. Before joining Urban Harvest he was active as a business developer in the manufacturing industry.

Martin is responsible for Certhon’s growth chamber projects. With a background in Optical engineering and climate control systems, Martin is specialized in (LED) lighting systems and growth chamber design. Certhon has an extensive experience in turn-key realization of growth chambers for the commercial production of vegetables and flowers as well as specialized chambers for plant research.

‍

Dr. Natalia Peres is a Professor at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC). She has an active applied research and extension program focused primarily on the management of fungal diseases of strawberry. She is also responsible for the Diagnostic Clinic at GCREC serving the strawberry, ornamental, and vegetable industries in the area. Her research and extension programs focus on the development of integrated management approaches to reduce losses to growers in Florida, but recommendations extend across regions affecting many growers, including strawberry nurseries. She has developed the widely adopted web-based Strawberry Advisory System, which provides recommendations for strawberry growers on the need for fungicide applications based on the weather conditions. Her program is internationally known and has attracted students and visiting scientists from many countries. She has authored or co-authored over 150 peer-reviewed articles in scientific journals as well as technical extension bulletins and published multiple book chapters. In addition to numerous awards from the University of Florida, she received the American Phytopathological Society (APS) William Boright Hewitt and Maybelle Ellen Ball Hewitt Award (2007), the APS Lee Hutchins Award for Excellence in Fruit Research (2014), and was recently recognized as an APS Fellow (2020).

As the power of social media has grown so much the past few years, influencer marketing has never been so important. I am Chloé , a masters student of medicine and 3 years ago I became a food influencer. It would be a great pleasure for me to tell you my ‘Instagramstory’. My brother who has a bachelor degree in marketing will join me and fill in my story from a more theoretical point of view. We will enforce our view on influencer marketing with astonishing statistics in an interactive way.

‍

Being able to tell the stories of people within the fresh produce industry, who grow and feed the world, is a privilege. Turning their stories and produce into brands is an exciting challenge, one my 14 years of experience within PR and digital media has prepared me for.

Social media and the ever-changing digital landscape enable me, and the team at Coregeo, to create powerfully crafted stories that resonate in wider culture. Stories that bring to life the passion and dedication within the world of fresh produce. Finding an audience for those stories, and then engaging that audience is the challenge that keeps this job fresh.  

‍

COREGEO - Cultivating winning brands

Coregeo has been successfully pioneering the commercialisation of fresh produce brands using a unique business model since 1999. We have grown licensed brands like Pink Lady® apples, Tenderstem® broccoli which is branded as Bimi ® in mainland Europe, into premium products and household names. Our approach enables us to invest in stand-out marketing, social media,digital, PR and promotion campaigns and brand management services through our licensed business and management model.

I have long been an advocate of getting more consumers to eat better and healthier throughout my career in the food industry. When I joined Coregeo who shared my vision I was excited at the opportunities of creating new products, and marketing campaigns that bring more consumers into the produce category.

My career has spanned 13 years and I have worked in dairy, healthcare and tech which gives me lots of learnings to apply to the fresh produce world.

‍

COREGEO - Cultivating winning brands

Coregeo has been successfully pioneering the commercialisation of fresh produce brands using a unique business model since 1999. We have grown licensed brands like Pink Lady® apples, Tenderstem® broccoli which is branded as Bimi ® in mainland Europe, into premium products and household names. Our approach enables us to invest in stand-out marketing, social media,digital, PR and promotion campaigns and brand management services through our licensed business and management model.

Jan Engelen is currently Head of Marketing & Sales at Coöperatie Hoogstraten, a major player in the fresh produce business. Jan started his career after finishing his Master Degree in Horticultural Engineering in 1998 at the editorial board of Proeftuinnieuws; a publication appealing to both fruit and vegetable producers and associated agribusiness. In 2000 Jan worked for Syngenta Seeds as a sales representative in Belgium and the Netherlands. In 2002, he became Business Development Manager for Syngenta Seeds after which he joined Coöperatie Hoogstraten in 2005. Between 2018 and 2022 Jan worked as Marketing & Sales Manager for Bakker Belgium NV – part of the Greenyard Group. In March 2022 he rejoined the team in Hoogstraten.

‍

Hiroki Koga is the co-founder & CEO of Oishii, the world’s largest indoor vertical strawberry farm. As a vertical farming industry expert with a decade of experience in the field, he leads the innovative company that is transforming the way we grow food today.

Prior to co-founding Oishii in 2016, Koga worked as a consultant in the Strategy and Operations unit at Deloitte Consulting Japan, where he focused on the pharmaceutical industry and biotechnology before spear heading the firm’s entry into agriculture technology consulting. At Deloitte, Koga used his unique understanding of the Japanese vertical farming ecosystem to assist many of the country’s leading vertical farm operators to develop business strategies and expand overseas. Koga also worked for multiple venture capital firms to conduct due diligence on vertical farm-related investments.

Koga earned his MBA from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business, and graduated with a B.S. in economics from Keio University. When not at Oishii’s vertical farms, Hiroki enjoys playing piano and soccer, as well as trying new restaurants. He lives in New Jersey with his family.

“Our mission is to spoil the consumers with delicious fruit in close cooperation with the whole supply chain.”

Fresh Forward is a breeder of strawberry- and applevarieties known from Elsanta, Sonata and Calinda. Teunis Sikma is the driving force behind Fresh Forward as Managing Director for 5 years. He has been working all his live in strawberries, from breeding to nursery, from grower to supply chain, focussing on motivating all involved to improve processes and concepts. After the the succes of Calinda, Fresh Forward is introducing a whole new concept in strawberries with Zadira.