Myllyn Paras took part in the Food ingredients Europe exhibition in Frankfurt from 30 November to 2 December 2021 and presented the OATGOODS innovation as part of the Food from Finland joint stand. This year, a total of 17,000 visitors attended the exhibition, either in person or as virtual guests, and there were over 800 exhibitors from 135 different countries.
At these professional exhibitions, those in charge of procurement and product development for companies go around and search for new ingredients and solutions for their products. Due to the COVID-19 situation, the attendance numbers were considerably lower than in previous years, but according to Development Manager Iiro Heinonen, just the right people in charge of product development for companies took part in the exhibition.
The smoothies made by Outi Yli-Heikkuri, Product Developer for OATGOODS, successfully confirmed that OATGOODS has a wide range of opportunities in the plant-based beverage product group, as the offered samples were a reason for delight among the visitors.
Kirsi Kaikkonen, Development Manager for OATGOODS, explained that meeting customers after a complete lock down gives hope for the future: the desire to develop new, better and healthier food products is still there in extraordinary circumstances, where taking care of oneself is highlighted. OATGOODS received an enthusiastic reception, and the team acquired promising new contacts. The different OATGOODS applications aroused the interest of the exhibition visitors quite evenly, whether it was the breading, smoothies, oat gruel or baking garnishes.
Next, the development ideas will be worked on with the contacts, this time via online meetings with the help of product and application documentation. OATGOODS also discovered a pleasing number of new uses, which Kaikkonen is delighted about.
