On October 15–16, 2025, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Food hosted Next Bite 2025 in Brussels, the organization’s flagship annual event bringing together agrifood leaders, researchers, policymakers, and innovators. The Center of Excellence in Food, Tourism & Leisure (CoEFTL) of The American College of Greece Research Center (ACG-RC) participated through both active engagement and project visibility, connecting our research mission with Europe’s broader food system transformation efforts.
CoEFTL in Brussels
Next Bite is where Europe’s food system innovation happens in real time. Held in Brussels, the heart of European policymaking, the event creates rare convergence: startups meet established food companies, researchers meet regulators, and theoretical solutions meet market realities. For research centers like ACG-RC, it is essential to be part of this extensive network and contribute to broader European and global conversations about sustainable food systems.
CoEFTL’s Executive Director Athanasios Krystallis attended Next Bite 2025, joining the event’s dynamic network of food system changemakers. Alongside him was Polymeros Chrysochou, Visiting Fellow at CoEFTL from Aarhus University, who took on a particularly active role at this year’s gathering as a session co-organizer and speaker.
If you’re wondering whether reusable packaging can actually scale beyond the farmer’s market aesthetic, you weren’t alone. That question anchored one of Next Bite’s most engaging sessions. On October 15th, during the event’s Food System Resilience Stage, Polymeros Chrysochou co-organized and spoke at the session titled “Pack to the Future: Scaling Food Packaging Reuse”. Working alongside Ilario Ingravallo, Mission Lead for EIT Food’s efforts in reducing risk for a fair and resilient food system, the session tackled a pressing regulatory and practical challenge facing Europe’s food sector.
The Packaging Challenge Europe Is Facing
The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) has set ambitious targets for reducing single-use packaging, with a strong emphasis on packaging reuse. This places considerable pressure on food businesses and policymakers to develop reuse models that are not only environmentally sound but also scalable, cost-effective, and consumer-friendly.
The session explored:
- Emerging reuse models currently being tested across Europe
- Practical and systemic barriers preventing wider adoption
- Enabling conditions necessary for these solutions to scale
- How design, logistics, consumer behavior, and policy intersect to create viable reuse systems
Drawing on academic research and real-world experimentation, including insights from an EIT Food-supported convening activity on sustainable packaging, the session presented several inspiring case studies. The takeaway? Reducing single-use packaging isn’t just necessary; it’s achievable. But it requires collaboration, innovative thinking, and yes, a willingness to rethink how we’ve always done things.
As the session wrapped up, one message remained clear: let’s keep the conversation going and make reusable packaging the new norm.
EPIC-SHIFT Takes the Stage (Well, the Screen)
While Polymeros Chrysochou was helping facilitate conversations about packaging, another dimension of CoEFTL’s work was gaining visibility elsewhere at the event.
Project posters were displayed on interactive screens at Next Bite 2025, showcasing cutting-edge research initiatives shaping Europe’s food future. Among them was EPIC-SHIFT (Securing Holistic and Impactful Food Systems Transformation with Novel Foods based on alternative proteins), an innovative EU-funded research project in which CoEFTL participates through the ACG-RC.
What Is EPIC-SHIFT?
EPIC-SHIFT is exploring alternative protein sources with a mission to reshape the EU food system through a comprehensive, unbiased knowledge base on the environmental, social, and economic potential of these proteins. With a consortium of 20 partners from 14 countries, the project engages four major actors in the innovation ecosystem: researchers, policymakers, industry, and consumers.
The project’s poster at Next Bite introduced attendees to its objectives and highlighted key expected impacts:
- Scientific Impact: Three comprehensive assessments (environmental, techno-economic, and social) will inform evidence-based policies across the EU.
- Societal Impact: Supporting sustainable, resilient, and fair food systems by improving access to information on nutritional profiles, health implications, and future scenarios that enable healthier consumer choices.
- Economic Impact: Evaluating market potential to support the competitiveness and growth of Europe’s novel food and alternative protein (NFAP) industry.
For CoEFTL, Next Bite 2025 provided an excellent platform to connect with fellow researchers and innovators, exchange ideas about protein diversification, and explore how biotechnology and alternative proteins can contribute to more sustainable food systems in Europe and beyond.
Looking Ahead: From Brussels to Action
The conversations started in Brussels don’t end there. Both the packaging reuse session and the visibility of EPIC-SHIFT represent ongoing work that will continue to evolve.
As Europe works toward its sustainability targets, the need for evidence-based research, practical innovation, and cross-sector collaboration has never been greater. CoEFTL remains committed to contributing to these efforts, whether through participation in EU-funded projects like EPIC-SHIFT, engagement with initiatives addressing packaging sustainability, or continued research that helps propel economic growth while protecting environmental and social wellbeing.
If Next Bite 2025 proved anything, it’s that the future of food isn’t being built in isolation. It’s happening through partnerships, challenging conversations, and a willingness to imagine and, eventually, create systems that work better for everyone.
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For more information about the EPIC-SHIFT project, please visit the
