Robert Coallier presents Agropur’s innovation strategy at 2019 Canadian Food & Drink Summit

Innovation, boldness and creativity were among the central themes of Agropur CEO Robert Coallier’s address at the 7th Annual Canadian Food & Drink Summit in Toronto on March 28.

The event organized by the Conference Board of Canada drew many food industry professionals and a roster of distinguished speakers, including Ted McKinney, the US Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, and Delphine Sallard, Head of the Trade and Economic Section of the EU delegation to Canada.

As one of the headline speakers, Mr. Coallier took the opportunity to present the Cooperative’s innovation strategy and how it is disrupting the dairy industry. He said dairy processors must adapt quickly to new market demands: “Millennials have an unprecedented appetite for innovation. The dairy industry needs to create new experiences at a faster pace.” 

Those new experiences must extend beyond the product and encompass the values of the business that makes it, Robert Coallier said. Today’s consumers look for transparency, social responsibility, authenticity and the product’s impact on the world when they make buying decisions. 

Mr. Coallier explained how Agropur has put innovation at the heart of its growth strategy in order to address the new demands. With the Inno Agropur platform, the Cooperative has established a structure to generate new products more quickly than ever. The platform’s Inno Challenge and Inno Accel components support open innovation and give promising start-ups an opportunity to develop their ideas. 

“Innovation is now at the heart of Agropur’s mission because we believe it is an essential factor in our sustainability,” Robert Coallier said in conclusion.