How will the planet be fed in the coming decades, as the global population keeps growing and natural resources become scarcer?
The answer to that question lies at the heart of European research into next-generation foods. The goal is not simply to develop more plant-based substitutes, but to create products that combine high nutritional value with a smaller environmental footprint.
This need is becoming increasingly urgent, since the production of cow’s milk is among the most resource-intensive forms of agriculture in terms of land, water and feed consumption, and is also accompanied by significant greenhouse gas emissions.
One of the scientists at the forefront of this effort is Greek biotechnologist Angeliki Triantafyllou, president of Cerealiq AB and winner of the European Inventor Award 2026 in the “Industry” category. Triantafyllou was a co-founder of Oatly, the world’s largest producer of oat-based drinks, and for more than 20 years she led the company’s research.
The patented enzymatic method she developed significantly improved the taste, colour, texture and foaming ability of oat drinks, while at the same time increasing their nutritional value compared with previous technologies.
