Science-based solutions on show

Australian food and beverage products are increasingly competing at a global level, challenging local processors to ensure their products meet multiple standards for quality, nutrition, safety, environmental impact and shelf life.

At all points in the food production process science-based solutions can help to solve these increasingly complex challenges. In addition to food ingredients, chemistry can help with asset maintenance and production hygiene requirements, food security and lifespan management.

In 2016, the BASF invested €1.9 billion into research and development worldwide, looking at the future and how to help its customers meet this global challenge and stay ahead of trends. BASF has a worldwide network that supports product development with proven, beneficial ingredients and provides solutions to meet increased industry regulations.

“With the global population predicted to reach nearly 10 billion people by 2050, people will need more nutritious, healthy food all over the world. Australia’s food processing industry will play a key role in meeting this need, with the help of BASF solutions from the world of chemistry,” BASF Head of Manufacturing Solutions Australia and New Zealand Greg Catterall said.

To collaborate in this area, the Newtrition Lab Asia Pacific opened this year at Singapore Polytechnic where BASF will focus on providing analytical service and co-developing products with customers in the region, catering to diverse markets to provide the right nutrients to the right people at the right time.

To meet the demands of the growing global population, the food and beverage industry will need to produce more with fewer resources. BASF believes that chemistry and science based solutions play an increasingly important role in supplying nutritious, safe and affordable food, while reducing the impact on our resources.

Science based solutions can be used to help improve not only the food itself, but also safety and quality in production facilities. “We understand the challenges of maintaining food production facilities efficiently. BASF has a range of industrial flooring solutions, such as Ucrete, that can demonstrate extraordinarily high resistance to mechanical, chemical and thermal stress, and depending on the layer thickness, are able to withstand temperatures ranging from -40 to 130°C,” BASF Head of Construction Australia and New Zealand Matt Ross explained. “Our construction solutions have been applied in local food processing plants operated by major Australian manufacturers and around the world since 1969.”

When it comes to increasing food lifespan, packaging also plays an important role, with one-third of the world’s food being wasted.

BASF is a leading innovation partner, manufacturer and supplier of additives for the plastics industry such as ultraviolet (UV) light stabilisers, antioxidants and process stabilisers, organic and inorganic pigments, effect pigments and other additives.

Packaging can be made of biodegradable plastics formed partly with renewable raw materials and after use they can be disposed of and composted with the rest of the food waste. Reducing the weight of packaging is another way of reducing environmental impact as well as improving logistics costs.

It is one of the most important tasks of our time to produce high-quality and safe food, and BASF can help.

Visit BASF at foodpro 2017 on Level 1, Stand W31, ICC, Darling Harbour, Sydney, 16–19 July. Register now to attend Australia’s largest trade exhibition for the food and beverage manufacturing industry.