IFPA Food Service Conference Event

At this year’s IFPA Food Service Conference Event held in Monterey, CA, our team stepped out to show off their stems – broccoli stems to be specific, in addition to showcasing other varieties developed with food service needs in mind.

The Food Service Industry encompasses businesses, institutions, and companies which prepare outside the home. Bayer prides itself on Innovation from Seed to Service. The input from our Food Service providers is crucial to ensure we develop varieties that can service their operations, whether there is a focus on flavor, processability or supply reliability. At Seminis and De Ruiter, we understand the unique challenges and demands of the foodservice industry. That's why we invest in development of varieties to meet these needs. 

At our Conference booth, we provided samples of our snackable broccoli stem to gain feedback from the industry. Broccoli stems are usually a by-product of broccoli head harvest. We have developed a broccoli variety that is not only easier to harvest in the field due to its height, but the stems can also be utilized in snackable applications, making it a sustainable and tasty alternative to waste. There was a ton of great reception. A good portion of booth-goers did not know that the stem was edible and many asked when the product would be available. 

In addition, there was a special night dedicated to K-12 where our team met specifically with food service providers in schools to better understand how we can play our part in making eating vegetables appealing to our youth.

Driving demand – so that customers have broad options when growing our product – is top of mind as we partner with growers. Our goal is to provide high-quality and high-performing seeds on the farm, as well as support beyond the farm.