Speakers: Gino Vrancken & Karel Peleman (Barry Callebaut)

Through a long history that in Belgium goes back to 1911, Barry Callebaut has emerged as the leading player in the cocoa and chocolate industry worldwide. A strategy that has been highly flexible but that has always relentlessly focused on the needs of our clients and on the quality of our products, has allowed us to leverage our specialism in cocoa into market leadership. The purpose of the current presentation is to discuss the trajectory that Barry Callebaut has taken and what the strategic pillars are to ensure future sustainable business growth with a focus on the research and development processes. A case study on how a research project resulted in the launch of a new chocolate will be discussed to illustrate this process.

The lecture will take place on campus Etterbeek at the VUB, room D0.05.

Entrance is free of charge for members of KVCV, others pay € 4 (on the spot).

The lecture starts at 19.00u, at 20.15u a degustation moment is foreseen.

Registration is not mandatory but strongly recommended. Register for this lecture.

Biography

Gino Vrancken finished his degree in applied biological sciences at Ghent University in 2003 after which he completed his PhD in applied microbiology at the VUB. Since then he has been with Barry Callebaut, in the beginning to coordinate the efforts at product development leveraging the cocoa fermentation. Since 2013 he is in charge of the cocoa science program which aims to utilize fundamental insights into cocoa composition as a major source of inspiration for innovation projects.

Karel Peleman is Sourcing Director Europe for Barry Callebaut. Within Food Manufacturers Europe he is responsible for the Cocoa and Edible Nuts Risk management. After having obtained a Bachelor degree Translator Interpreter at the Mercator Hogeschool Ghent, he started working for Barry Callebaut in 1982.