From crisis to catalyst: How biosciences will shape the future of food

By Clementina Dellomonaco, Senior Vice President of Food Biosciences at IFF.

The food industry is at a breaking point. Climate disruption, volatile supply chains, and rising consumer demands have collided to create the most challenging conditions in decades.

But this crisis is also a turning point, and biosciences are the breakthrough technology ready to meet it. From enzymes that unlock better nutrition to microbes that enable sustainable sourcing, food biosciences are quietly powering a revolution behind the scenes. What was once niche science is now mission-critical for feeding a growing population on a warming planet.

Today, 75% of global consumers ¹ say they are willing to pay more for products that promise label-friendly* attributes, such as products made from familiar nutritious ingredients that are better for people and planet. Meanwhile, the cost of ingredients – from wheat to dairy, and everything in between – is edging up,² along with the cost of labor. And the impacts of a warming climate are being felt across the board³. There is more uncertainty around crop forecasts, negative impacts on raw material quality and higher disease pressure disrupting supply. 

In the midst of this complexity, one thing is clear: biosciences innovation has become a fundamental driver of building a more resilient food system.

By applying the power of enzymes, cultures, proteins, and microbes, food biosciences are helping manufacturers adapt to today’s challenges with solutions that are both scalable and sustainable. At IFF, this approach isn’t theoretical; it’s scientific. We’re applying decades of deep scientific expertise to help our partners produce more with less, reformulate to meet changing tastes, and re-engineer supply chains to reduce their environmental footprint.

Let us explain.

— Consumers are driving the shift —

What consumers value in food is changing. In the past, taste, convenience, and price were dominant drivers. Today, they remain important, but they are increasingly filtered through a lens of wellness, ethics, and transparency. According to our research⁴, consumers are expected to place a growing emphasis on foods that support personal health while minimizing the impact they have on the natural environment.  

The interesting thing is, this shift isn’t isolated to niche markets. According to PANOPTIC – IFF’s global insights platform tracking consumer shifts across health, sustainability, and technology – ‘regenerative consumption’ is no longer fringe; it’s mainstream. People are now actively looking for products with a story of environmental responsibility and functional benefit. According to IPSOS, 80% of people globally⁵ believe that we are headed for environmental disaster without rapid change. Shoppers want fewer additives and more plant-based alternatives. They expect ethical sourcing, lower emissions, and reduced packaging.

And they want all of this without compromising on taste, texture, or performance.

In this context, traditional food processing approaches alone can’t keep up. Manufacturers must now reformulate for purpose, not just profit. And food biosciences offer the tools to do it.

— A tougher operating environment for food producers — 

As consumer expectations rise, so do the pressures on food manufacturers. Inflation continues to drive up costs across the supply chain, and raw material shortages are more frequent due to climate variability and geopolitical uncertainty. At the same time, retailers are tightening requirements on sustainability disclosures, and regulators are introducing more stringent health and nutrition standards. For example, variability in wheat quality has disrupted baked goods production across multiple markets in the last few years, while fluctuations in milk solids and energy costs have created volatility for dairy producers. Breweries, meanwhile, face increasing scrutiny over water usage and the greenhouse gas emissions tied to the grain that they source and the fermentation process in breweries. 

There’s no single solution to addressing these problems. But bioscience is well placed to help manufacturers re-engineer production systems in a way that makes them more resilient to these types of disruption. With targeted enzyme and microbial interventions, manufacturers can work with lower-grade inputs, extend product freshness, reduce waste, and increase yield – all the while keeping consumers more than happy. 

— Biosciences in action: The Science Behind Baking, Brewing, and Dairy— 

In baking, our enzyme-based solutions allow producers to maintain consistent product quality, even when wheat quality is of lower quality, or unpredictable. By stabilizing dough behavior and improving flour performance, IFF enzymes not only reduce waste during production but also help to keep products fresh for longer.

We support bakery manufacturers in optimizing recipes to stabilize flour quality and reduce dependence on expensive or inconsistent ingredients. The approach helps to:

• Improve flour quality using local resources and reduce production waste

• Reduce ingredient dependency by lowering reliance on high-cost, volatile raw materials
• Adapt recipes with enzyme solutions that ensure consistent performance despite market fluctuations

It is an approach that is particularly valuable in markets facing both price-sensitive consumers and high spoilage rates. Such innovations are especially crucial for regions with extended supply chains or warmer climates, where product freshness can be compromised quickly.

In the brewing industry, biosciences have opened the door to a new generation of local sourcing. Brewers can now use regional, less refined grains, such as unmalted barley, corn or sorghum, thanks to enzyme solutions that convert starches efficiently without compromising flavor or mouthfeel. This not only reduces reliance on imported malt but also lowers emissions from transportation and cultivation.

IFF Brewing: Maximize Potential When Brewing with Corn

Our enzyme solutions are delivering quantifiable results: up to 36% reductions in carbon emissions, 41% water savings, and a significantly smaller land footprint for raw materials. Importantly, these solutions preserve product quality, ensuring consumers still enjoy the same taste and sensory experience they expect.

Check out this infographic that breaks down just how important biosciences is proving to be in brewery.

After all, biosciences are not just about consumer appeal; they’re also powerful tools for operational efficiency, across most food manufacturing segments. In energy-intensive processes, enzymes allow producers to reduce fermentation times, lower heat requirements, and cut water use. IFF’s DIAZYME® NOLO, for example, supports low- and no-alcohol brewing with reduced energy inputs. Similarly, BCLEAR™ enables beer stabilization with dramatically lower water consumption.

These types of interventions create ripple effects throughout the supply chain, lowering emissions, reducing input needs, and shrinking overall environmental impact. When scaled across global production volumes, the potential is transformative.

Biosciences also enable to produce label-friendly* in traditionally complex categories like dairy. Our advanced enzyme technology, such as TEXSTAR™, provides consistent texture in fermented dairy and plant-based products, without the need for synthetic stabilizers or thickeners – the characteristics of products that consumers are increasingly turning their backs on. The technology helps brands move toward simpler ingredient lists while improving supply chain agility and reducing the supply chain-related GHG emissions (Scope 3) tied to texturants, for example.

As consumers become aware that limiting sugar to less than 10%⁶ of daily energy intake may help reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, manufacturers are responding by creating more reduced sugar or lactose products. But that’s not straightforward. Lowering sugar can negatively impact texture, mouthfeel, and flavor, making products feel watery or astringent. While natural sweeteners like stevia and monk fruit are popular sugar alternatives, they can introduce off-notes such as bitterness or an unbalanced sweetness profile – disliked by up to 60% of consumers if not masked properly. Our solutions include lactase enzymes (like NURICA^TM and BONLACTA^TM ) to naturally sweeten and reduce sugar, and YO-MIX® PRIME cultures that enhance sweetness perception and create a mild flavor in yogurts.

— Building a more resilient global food system — 

Perhaps the most powerful benefit of food biosciences lies in their ability to build system-wide resilience. With climate instability on the rise and resource scarcity becoming the norm, the food industry must adapt quickly. Biosciences offer flexibility, allowing producers to use local or lower-quality inputs, adjust to seasonal variability, and maintain product quality under changing conditions.

They also support long-term nutritional and environmental goals. Through precision fermentation, manufacturers can enhance micronutrient profiles, support gut health with probiotics, and reduce dependency on synthetic inputs. Through enzymatic waste valorization, they can upcycle byproducts into bio-based materials, for example, closing loops and reducing landfill.

As we look ahead, it’s clear that biosciences are not a supplementary technology. They are foundational. They allow the food industry to move from reactive to proactive, from linear to circular, and from extractive to regenerative.

At IFF, we are leading this transformation. With one of the industry’s most comprehensive bioscience platforms, we bring not only the tools but the expertise to help manufacturers scale change. Whether it’s reducing food waste, increasing nutritional access, or lowering emissions, biosciences deliver real-world solutions that matter, today and tomorrow.

In a food system defined by complexity, they offer clarity. In a moment defined by urgency, they offer speed. And in a future defined by sustainability, they are the engine of progress.

About the Author

CLEMENTINA DELLOMONACO
Senior Vice President of Food Biosciences at IFF.

With over 15 years of experience in R&D, product management, and business leadership, Clementina has proven track record of driving growth and innovation in the Biotechnology sector. She holds a PhD in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Rice University and has held various leadership roles at DuPont and IFF.
Clementina is passionate about creating value for customers and stakeholders by leveraging her deep expertise in fermentation technology and metabolic engineering. She thrives on collaborating with diverse teams and partners to develop practical solutions that impact everyday life.

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_References

1. 75% of Consumers Will Pay Extra For Clean Label Ingredients, Suply Side Food & Beverages Journal, 2017
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2. Navigating the Future of UK Food Production and Manufacturing: Challenges and Opportunities, FWB, 2024 ↩︎
3. Climate change adaptation pressure heats up for food and agriculture companies, ING, 2024 ↩︎
4. Look Ahead, PANOPTIC, IFF, 2025 ↩︎
5. Global surveys show people’s growing concern about climate change, Clean Energy Wire, 2024 ↩︎
6. WHO calls on countries to reduce sugars intake among adults and children, World Health Organization, 2015 ↩︎

_{*The term “label-friendly” refers to products that enable a simpler label with fewer and recognizable ingredients for consumers.}