Nutrition and food technologies

Personalized nutrition, functional foods, robotized agriculture: tomorrow's food is served in the canton of Vaud

With a strong agricultural tradition, the canton of Vaud saw the agri-food sector develop over a century ago, with the creation of Nestlé in Vevey in 1905. The region also benefits from a strong industrial tradition, complemented by a strong spirit of innovation, enabling the companies it hosts to design and produce new solutions to meet today’s needs and anticipate the challenges of the future.

Products from the Vaud food industry are exported worldwide. In addition to the large-scale trade in foodstuffs, the canton of Vaud has several important players in the research and development of new products. Academic institutes, including the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), or the EHL Hospitality Management School, are working on future oriented challenges.

For Stefan Palzer, CTO of Nestlé, “Switzerland is home to a unique innovation ecosystem for food and nutrition. Together, we can more effectively address global challenges such as delicious, nutritious and affordable food for all, sustainable packaging, and climate change mitigation.” In light of this, the canton of Vaud, EPFL, EHL and Nestlé joined forces in 2020 to develop and promote an innovative food and nutrition ecosystem worldwide, under the initiative "Swiss Food and Nutrition Valley".