In Aotearoa New Zealand, we stand on the edge of a transformation – not just in what we innovate, but how. At NZFIN, we believe the future of food innovation is not about isolated breakthroughs. It’s about connected ones. Today, we’re not just helping launch new products; we are reimagining our food systems to be more resilient, secure, and efficient.
Traditional innovation models are no longer fit for purpose. To address today’s complex challenges – climate change, food security, resource scarcity – we need networked innovation: agile, collaborative, and open by design, across organisations, not just within. In a world of tight budgets and rapid change, New Zealand’s scale becomes our superpower. We are small enough to connect easily, and bold enough to think big together.
Trust is the currency of collaborative transformation. In our work, we’ve seen this play out powerfully when we come to the table as an industry partner, invested in driving solutions together. These relationships weren’t built overnight – they were cultivated through rolling up our sleeves and understanding the outcomes we are trying to achieve collectively.
Networked innovation and collaboration are not easy – they take time and investment to pay dividends. And they require a shared and understood vision to ensure we are rowing in the same direction. Are we willing to make the investment as a country to realise our secret sauce? Do we have an innovation identity as a country that is fit for the 21st century?
When innovation is mission-led and ecosystem-driven, the outcomes are greater than the sum of their parts. Bringing innovative food solutions to the market involves many disciplines, many sectors, for many outcomes such as health, happiness, community, the economy and our environment. So why not connect the different parts better? From shared pilot and processing plants and open-access labs to digitally connected ecosystem platform, we are evolving beyond transactional projects to enable transformational programmes with our partners.
This enables us to innovate around our food production systems that meet global need – such as ones that take surplus and under-utilised primary products, transforms them into valuable ingredients for food, for energy, for fertiliser, and then export our IP. This demands a shift from siloed solutions to systemic thinking and aligned visions at a local, regional, and national level. New Zealand can be pilot scale for the world. Should we not embrace this?
Looking ahead, NZFIN’s role is not only to support great ideas, but to create the conditions in which they can thrive. That means continuing to evolve models for resource sharing and collaboration, investing in digital tools, and making the application of science into commercialisation more accessible for ambitious entrepreneurs and industry.
If we get this right, we won’t just grow new products. We’ll grow a new culture of innovation that builds on our history – one that is inclusive, agile, and capable of meeting the needs of today and future generations.
