Workshop on Consumer Foresight
The Consumer Foresight Workshop took place on the 4-5 April 2007. The workshop endeavoured to identify and characterise the factors that contribute to successful exploitation of research. The more demanding consumer driven marketplace that now exists means that new technologies and innovation will only be exploitable if they are perceived as being in the consumer’s interests and fulfilling consumer requirements. New advances in consumer research and communication techniques need to be used to ensure that scientific developments are focused appropriately and do not fail due to consumer disinterest or opposition.
The workshop followed a similar format to the first workshop, using a series of case studies where Europe and NZ have effectively used consumer foresight in developing food research projects that have led to the development of innovative products. Through discussion sessions these were contrasted with examples where exploitation has failed as a result of consumer issues being ignored. Break-out sessions were used to expand the debate and a final panel and discussion session was used to derive a checklist of key success factors.
The findings will be disseminated in the form of a proceedings document and a summary of best practice principles. The outcomes will be followed up in the study visits and the conference.
Aims of Workshop
- To enable collaboration between research groups in Europe and NZ.
- To increase the uptake of scientific development for the benefit of consumers.
Objectives of Workshop
- To determine the issues and factors that drive consumer concerns or contribute to consumer confidence across the EU and in NZ.
- To identify methods by which trends in changing consumer requirements may be predicted and to which industry, particularly SMEs, can respond.
- To develop guidelines for the incorporation of consumer interests into research project development to enhance commercial realisation and delivery of benefits to the consumer.
- To develop strategies to deliver products that meet consumer needs by innnovation and effective marketing.
