Turning breakthrough Co2 protein technology into everyday food
How do you turn a breakthrough protein technology into food products people actually need, understand and want to buy?
A2F (Air To Food) is an ambitious food innovation initiative exploring how CO₂ can become a sustainable raw material for future food production. At the heart of the project is a new bioprocess that can convert CO₂ into protein-rich biomass with the help of microorganisms - opening up new possibilities for producing food with less pressure on agricultural land, water and conventional animal-based protein sources.
In collaboration with Orkla, CPH Strategy supported the consumer and category side of the project: identifying where this new protein source could create the strongest relevance in everyday food.
The challenge
A new protein technology only becomes meaningful when it can be translated into products that solve real consumer needs.
The challenge was therefore not simply to understand the future of protein, but to identify which food categories, target groups and eating occasions would offer the strongest potential for protein-enriched innovation.
At the same time, the work needed to balance sustainability, health, taste, convenience and credibility. Future protein products must not only be better for the planet - they also need to feel relevant, desirable and easy to understand in people’s everyday lives.
The approach
We built a comprehensive insight foundation to ensure that the innovation work was grounded in market reality, expert knowledge and real consumer needs.
The process combined several layers of research: trend and category analysis across health, food and protein-enriched products; store checks in London and Copenhagen; expert interviews and workshop sessions with leading voices in nutrition, food innovation, consumer trends and future food; and 12 qualitative focus groups across Denmark and the UK.
The focus groups covered six strategically important consumer segments: young students, active sports and fitness enthusiasts, families, health-conscious adults, people using weight-loss medication and seniors. This made it possible to understand how protein needs vary across life stages, lifestyles, motivations and everyday eating situations.
Together, the research gave us a broad and nuanced understanding of where protein-enriched products can create the strongest relevance - not only as a health claim, but as a solution to real consumer needs such as satiety, convenience, ageing, energy, weight management and everyday nutrition.
Based on this foundation, we identified the most promising opportunity spaces for future development. As the final step, we created an ideation workshop with Orkla and Spora (global food research center) to identify concrete product innovation directions. This helped to define which types of foods could be developed with added protein, and how they could become credible, desirable and relevant in everyday life.
The result
The project resulted in a strategic innovation platform for the A2F-project.
It clarified where protein-enriched products have the strongest consumer and market relevance, and which categories, target groups and eating occasions are most promising for further development.
The work gives Orkla and the partners a clearer foundation for making strategic innovation choices: where to play, who to develop for, and how a new sustainable protein source can become part of everyday food.
Read more about the A2F technology and consortium here: https://ingenioer.au.dk/en/current/news/view/artikel/food-innovation-without-agriculture-from-co2-to-climate-friendly-food