Successful visit of innovative foods mission to Japan
Last June a fact-finding mission on innovative foods visited Japan. Through exchanges with large companies, startups and research institutes active in the field of innovative foods the mission gained insights into how Japan deals with alternative proteins and established new contacts for collaboration and innovation. In addition, the visit was instrumental in reaching out to Japanese counterparts to contribute to the program at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai that the Netherlands is currently preparing.
From 23 to 28 June, Regional Development Agency Oost NL and the Netherlands Embassy in Japan jointly organized the Innovative Foods Mission to Japan, exploring market trends in Japan and collaboration opportunities between Japan and the Netherlands in the field of alternative proteins and healthy food. The mission consisted of representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Studio Fava, ROM Utrecht Region, Oost NL and the Netherlands Embassy in Japan.
Inspiring visits and dialogues
During the mission, the delegation paid several inspiring company visits to big corporates such as Ajinomoto, Mizkan, Asahi Group Foods and startups such as Next Meats. Knowledge institutions were also visited at Tsukuba-Plant Innovation Research Center of the University of Tsukuba and the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO).
In addition to visits, the mission program included a symposium on alternative proteins organized by the Netherlands Embassy in Japan. The well-attended symposium with over 100 participants highlighted the growing interest and excitement around the topic of alternative proteins. See our previous article on Agroberichten Buitenland for more information about Dutch-Japanese cooperation in alternative proteins.
The delegation further participated in a subcommittee meeting of the Dialogue on Agricultural Cooperation on alternative proteins and precision fermentation, co-organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and the Netherlands Embassy in Japan. During this session, valuable information was exchanged on government policies and market conditions in Japan and the Netherlands. At the invitation of MAFF, the delegation also attended the general meeting of the Food Tech Public-Private Council. This government-industry-academia collaboration council whose secretariat is located at MAFF aims to stimulate problem-solving and new market development in collaborative areas of emerging technologies such as food tech that contribute to the development of the food and agriculture industries and strengthen food security. Presentations from council members – mostly pitches from startups – during the meeting and networking afterwards provided a rare opportunity to learn about Japan’s latest initiatives related to advanced technologies such as cellular agriculture and genome editing, and to get acquainted with the stakeholders involved in such efforts.
Road2Osaka
The fact-finding mission was part of the Road2Osaka program, helping to prepare the presentation of the Netherlands at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan. Regional Development Agency Oost NL, in collaboration with various partners, is currently preparing a program dedicated to alternative proteins and healthy food to be carried out at during the Expo Food Theme Week from June 5 to June 16, 2025. The mission provided new insights into the developments in Japan and valuable opportunities at networking that will enrich the program at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan.