Precision Nutrition: Opportunities in Marketing and Science

A summary of a PMA Virtual Town Hall presentation. PMA members can access the recording on-demand here.

Precision nutrition is becoming more widely accepted, and gaining a better understanding of precision nutrition practices and the marketing opportunities it presents was the focus of a December 9, 2020 PMA® Virtual Town Hall. PMA gathered experts from different disciplines to talk about the implications for members and the industry. Moderated by PMA Chief Science Officer Max Teplitski, the panel included:

Jim Flatt, co-founder and CEO of Brightseed, a company working to make proactive health more accessible through the discovery and development of natural product solutions for food, health care, and agriculture.
Roger Pepperl, former marketing director with Stemilt Growers, who has worked on increasing trade recognition and building brand awareness.
Barbara Ruhs, MS, RDN, retail health strategy and promotion for Avocados from Mexico, leveraging supermarket dietitians to communicate health benefits of avocados. She is also the chief marketer behind themarketrd.com, a consultancy focused on retail health promotion strategy.

Boosting fruit and vegetable consumption is essential for the health of consumers, the produce industry, and society at large. The panelists concurred that:

Fruit and vegetable consumption in the United States and worldwide is significantly lower than recommendations.
Fruits and vegetables contain macro- and micro-nutrients that contribute to human health. A growing body of evidence shows the power of positive nutrition and the role of phytonutritents.
Consumer decisions about food are not based solely on health factors, but also fun, taste, and convenience. And consumers are increasingly taking ownership of their health, including the role of food choices, which has become even more evident in the past year.

Marketing is essential to demystify science, enhance transparency, and drive consumers to eat more fruits and vegetables by showcasing fun, convenience, and taste.
Generational change is happening, driving greater interest and adoption of plant-based or plant-forward diets, especially among Millennials and their families.

Fruit and Vegetable Opportunities in Precision Nutrition

Flatt noted that the next couple of decades will be a golden age for produce as consumers focus on the link between food, especially produce and other plant foods, and good health. While past efforts focused on removing or reducing “bad” components in foods (for good reasons), the focus now is on positive nutrition, including phytonutrients that have important health benefits. He noted the “positive” nutrition approach has three times the beneficial effect that reducing the “bad” in food has.

Advances in scientific techniques can offer a more holistic view of what benefits a plant provides. “In our work, we ask what components can have beneficial effects,” Flatt said. “We can profile any plant, finding five to 20 times the number of compounds previously known.

“There is so much to learn about small molecules, micronutrients,” he said. Plants produce more than 10 million compounds, but the world has catalogued only 100,000. Calling plants “nature’s foremost chemists,” he cited aspirin as analgesic or metformin found in the French lilac as beneficial compounds or derivatives that are used to benefit human health. “There is potential for so many more. This is going to be the decade of phytonutrients…and they are the reason for a plant-forward, produce-rich diet that increases longevity and improves overall health.”

Brightseed is looking at five major health conditions: metabolic health, immune health, digestive health, cognitive function/wellness, and bone and muscle health. He said the company is working to better understand small molecules in soy for new health benefits that then can then drive new sales. And he noted that what they learn from work with soy is applicable to fruits and vegetables – the methodology can be applied directly.

“Whole fruits and vegetables have a very strong story, and we founded this technology to much more rapidly develop the knowledge base so that we can really help the industry realize the value that's inherent in the products that are produced.”

In its work in metabolic health, Brightseed discovered a potent natural compound that helps restore good metabolic health in humans and specifically combats adverse effects of over-consumption of calories – a big problem, especially in the United States. The compound, discovered initially in a rare plant, is present in more than 80 fruits, vegetables, and spices. “We use the power of this platform – having discovered in one plant, identify the same compound or analog in others. It’s catalytic,” Flatt said.

A single human gene mutation causes 12% of people to perceive the taste of cilantro as “soapy,” and other differences exist, usually related to how intensely a person perceives aroma or taste. Flatt, noting that he is among the 12%, said that the foundation has been laid for breeding for taste and nutrition and that breeding for more benefits and personalized preferences can easily happen within the decade.

Rhus said that anything that brings light to additional health benefits of fruits and vegetables is going to be good for entire industry. Getting the message to consumers is critical, and fresh produce organizations should rely on experts like registered dietitians to communicate to consumers as RDs are skilled in nutrition and consumer communications.

“Everyone needs to eat more – less than 10% of people eat enough fruits and vegetables, and we know that one in five deaths is related to insufficient intake of fruits and vegetables,” she said, implying the opportunity and impact for both consumers and the industry if consumption were to rise to recommended levels.

She said that plant-based eating will gain momentum – not just plant-based meats, but also fruits and vegetables. Personalized nutrition will become more prevalent because everyone has a phone and can track their intake. She mused on the opportunities of pooling what people eat with medical records and then using AI to assess what food consumption causes which outcomes. “We will have more solid data that proves the benefits of fruits and vegetables.”

In terms of how quickly this transformation can happen, Pepperl said: “I think it’s here, we are at the starting point. A plant-based diet, whatever that means to people, is exciting, new. Millennials have families and they are doing it.”

Flat explained a growing movement around “food as medicine.” He called it a sweet spot for the whole industry. “Fruits and vegetables are the best sources of food as medicine,” he said. “Look up Food Prescription programs that will reimburse consumers for eating whole fruits, vegetables, and grain products. It has been tried and worked, and it reduced health care costs and delivery.” He expects that in next five years the industry will be able to embrace that. “I can’t say how quickly, but consumers want it, economics demand it, and the science supports it,” he said.

What About Kids?

The panel agreed that starting children with strong fruit and vegetable consumption is key to both their future consumption and their health.

Rhus noted that two things influence kids’ consumption – exposure and familiarity. “What you eat as a child heavily influences what you eat as an adult. So many adults today didn’t eat a lot of fruits and vegetables as a kid or (the fruits and vegetables were) prepared badly. So they don’t like them as adults.” Through multiple exposures of as many varieties of produce as possible, children develop a taste for them, she said. Familiarity is important – serving produce items with other things they like. “There is behavioral science on this, but parents innately know this.”

Rhus noted that the foodservice industry is doing a great job – offering fruits and vegetables that taste good. “Taste drives preference for any food.”

Pepperl concurred, noting that Stemilt offers fun recipes plus nutrition information, and information on how its products are grown. “We make recipes that are simple, fun, healthy, non-threatening. Fun for kids. Keep the recipes nutritious and good. Healthy, fun, delicious.”

Implications for Production

In response to a participant’s question about modern ag techniques’ impact on nutrition values, Flat noted that there are always differences in nutrient density of a particular product based on how and where it is grown. Plants are a product of their environment – farming practices, soil and weather conditions, etc. He noted that some breeding – to increase yield, shelf life, etc. – has been done at the expense of some nutritional value.

However, he said, “this isn’t a zero-sum game – we can achieve both (ag and nutrition benefits).” Being aware of the impact on nutrition allows the industry to use technology to improve products without reducing nutrition values.

“It’s not true for all, but there are some clear examples where we’ve lost nutrition quality over time due to breeding,” Flatt said. He noted that organic practices have been shown to produce items higher in some beneficial compounds. “Practices that are good for planet often yield better products that are healthier for us,” he said, encouraging listeners to get that story out in a way that resonates with consumers, which will then build demand for those items.

Rhus cautioned that the industry should never scare people away from conventional products. “Everyone wants to do what’s right for the earth and they want to afford fruits and vegetables,” she said. “The big picture is eat as much (fruits and vegetables) as you can.”

Pepperl explained that there is a lot of crossover between organic and conventionally grown products. Many conventional items are farmed with organic practices. “It’s a wide-open subject, and I agree with Barbara – we have to increase consumption.”

Consumer Acceptance of Technology

The panel discussed the challenges of communicating technology, especially GMOs, to consumers. Such technology opens opportunities to improve products in terms of consumer benefits like taste and nutrition as well as ag benefits. Flat noted that early GMO benefits mainly targeted farmers and production. As consumers see more benefits to themselves, they will be more accepting.

Rhus said that GMOs can be scary to those without a science background. “We use technology in medicine, why not in food – after all we eat plant-based meat. Technology can provide benefits to plant, to the earth, to nutrition or taste. Every fruit and vegetable is different than it was 50 or 100 years ago. Some of the differences come from Mother Nature. Some is from technology, creating better taste, looks, etc. We need to excite consumers.”

The panelists agreed that consumers need more information and transparency to avoid them jumping to conclusions. Pepperl said: “Anytime we get an amazing apple, consumers think they’re GMOs. Ours are not. The majority of apples (99.9%) are not GMO, but many consumers think they are.”

“We need to recommunicate genetic modification,” Rhus said. “Hybridization is about combining different genes. Genetic engineering shortens the time-frame to improved varieties.”

Virtual Town Hall Panelists

Jim Flatt
Co-Founder & CEO
Brightseed

Barbara Ruhs, MS, RDN
Retail Health Strategy and Promotion
Avocados From Mexico

Roger Pepperl
Marketing Director (Ret.)
Stemilt Growers