(Derio. 19 October 2010). Gathering the food trends from all the corners of the Earth and making them known through the Internet is the main aim of the Food Trend Trotters project being promoted by the AZTI-Tecnalia Technology Centre, which specialises in marine and foodstuff research, and Mondragon Innovation & Knowledge (MIK, S.Coop). The first experience in this innovative initiative kicked off on 15 October. On that day a ‘food trend seeker' set off on a two-month tour that will take him to Japan and the United States in order to study, among other things, the food habits or new products and packaging in the two countries which are pioneers in food innovation. The information gathered by the traveller will be made known in real time through seven Internet social networks and complemented by technical information provided by AZTI-Tecnalia researchers.

The traveller's daily experiences will provide a chance to get to know about the eating habits of the Japanese and the Americans at first hand, in addition to informing about emerging consumer trends and food innovation. Regarding this latter aspect the untiring traveller Asier López will be following the guidelines established by AZTI-Tecnalia and be providing information that is relevant and of value for consumers and the food industry.

The aim of this innovative project is to generate and disseminate knowledge on consumer habits, and science, technology and innovation to do with food. The end user of this initiative is the consumer, and that is why the research will be focusing on four basic aspects: food and health, food safety, sustainability, and new technologies applied to the food industry.

The Food Trend Trotters' channels of dissemination will be some of the world's most popular social networks: Twitter, FourSquare, Youtube, Formspring, Facebook, Flickr and QIK. So it is about reaching the wider public and youth in particular, as well as professionals in the food sector.

Japan and the USA are the first destinations of Food Trend Trotters, but AZTI-Tecnalia is planning to go on touring the world with ‘food trend seekers', and devoting special attention to pioneering or emerging regions as far as food innovation is concerned.

The engineer Asier Lopez is the first "food trend seeker" in this project. His adventures can be followed on the www.foodtrendtrotters.com blogs and through the social network links that the project is participating in.

The project is being supported by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) with the collaboration of the IRTA technology centre and the Basque Culinary Center.

PICTURES Food Trend Trotters.

Further information:

• www.foodtrendtrotters.com
• www.jantrotters.com
• Twitter: http://twitter.com/jantrotters
• FourSquare: http://foursquare.com/user/jantrotters
• Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/jantrotters
• Formspring: http://www.formspring.me/jantrotters
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Food-Trend-Trotters/142417885799391?ref=ts
• Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/53853742@N08/
• QIK: http://qik.com/jantrotters

Comparte este contenido: