Summit 2022 Agenda


Building upon the great momentum of last year's event, we invite you to join rising Nordic food- and ag-tech scaleups on a comprehensive 2-day event in the San Francisco Bay Area - the world's innovation center. This summit aims to bridge the Nordic food- and ag-tech industry with the US ecosystem investors, industry leaders, companies, and academia to pave the way for a sustainable, climate-concious food system globally. 
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The Nordic-US Food Summit 2021 took place virtually over 3 days and successfully brought together 150+ unique attendees, 50+ speakers, 20+ partners, and 21 selected Nordic companies from Sweden, Finland, and Iceland.

November 3rd: Nordic Talk & Panel Discussion


9:00 PDT / 17:00 CET: Welcome Remarks & Moderator Introduction

9:20 PDT / 17:20 CET: Official Welcome by the Embassy of Denmark in Washington D.C.

9:25 PDT / 17:25 CET: Keynote |Cross Pollination and Hybrid Vigor with Will Rosenzweig, Faculty Advisor at the Center for Responsible Business at Berkeley Haas; Co-Founder & Chair at Plant Futures

9:45 PDT / 17:45 CET: Panel Discussion | Regenerative Agriculture: Enabling a Climate-Conscious Future of Food

Explore how farming and grazing practices can contribute to reversing climate changes with

  • Adrian Rodrigues, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Provenance Capital Group

  • Carin Gerhardt, Director of Corporate Programs at SVG Ventures | THRIVE

  • ​​​​​​​Lena Horvath, Investment Associate at Gullspång Re:food

Moderated by Gabe Youtsey, Chief Innovation Officer at University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources


10:45 PDT / 18:45 CET: Networking Break

11:05 PDT / 19:05 CET: Panel Discussion | Lab to Table: Disruption in Plant-Based Foods 

Discuss current trends and innovations in the plant-based food game with

  • Aaron Schaller, CTO & Co-Founder at MeliBio

  • ​​​​​​​Christian Adams, Global Product Line Manager for Cultures and Enzymes for Plant Based at IFF

  • ​​​​​​​Kristian Kriegbaum Jensen, PhD, Senior Consultant at Danish Technological Institute​​​

Moderated by Marie Jørgensen, Senior Commercial Advisor for Food and Agriculture with the Trade Council of Denmark


12:05 PDT / 20:05 CET: Fireside Chat | Building a Successful International Food-Tech Brand

Get an inside scoop into the success factors for an international food-tech brand in the US with 

  • Doug Carlson, Founder at Fiji Water; CEO at Good Idea Drinks​​​​​​​

  • Maricel Saenz, Founder & CEO at Compound Foods 

Moderated by Laura Jenkins, Head of Partnerships & Food Initiatives at Global SF


12:55 PDT / 20:55 CET: Lunch 

14:00 PDT / 22:00 CET: Nordic Talks 

Immerse in a discussion with some of the brightest minds in the Nordics and their US counterparts who have a common motivation to share inspiration on how citizens can take concrete action on sustainability and address the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with​​​​​​​

  • Adrian Rodrigues, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Provenance Capital Group

  • Björn Öste, Founder at Oatly & Good Idea Drinks


16:00 PDT / 00:00 CET: Networking Reception at UC Berkeley Chou Hall​​​​​​​
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November 4th: Company Pitches & Keynote Discussion

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9:00 PDT / 17:00 CET: Opening Remarks 

9:15 PDT / 17:15 CET: Official Welcome by the Embassy of Iceland in Washington D.C.

9:20 PDT / 17:20 CET: Official Welcome by the Embassy of Sweden in Washington D.C.

9:25 PDT / 17:25 CET: Keynote | Future of Food with​​​ Björn Öste, Founder at Oatly & Good Idea Drinks

Explore where the food market is heading and how to make food part of the solution to a healthy and climate-resilient community. Discuss the opportunities and challenges ahead for plant-based food and food for health


9:45 PDT / 17:45 CET: Company Pitches 

  • Moving Floor AB (Automated cleaning of animal barns)

  • Improvin' (Food production environmental impact tracking platform)

  • Mycorena (Mycoprotein ingredient for alternative protein)

  • Agtira (Vertical and indoor cultivation systems)

  • Meal Makers (Digital wholesale marketplace)

  • Responsible Foods (Sustainable healthy Icelandic snacks)

  • Bygg Foods (Plant-based milk)

  • GeoSilica Iceland (Health supplements from geothermal waters)

  • Aventure AB (Attractive foods with proven preventive properties)

  • ARWA Foodtech (Plant-based food products)

Moderated by Nate Salpeter, General Partner at SNØCAP; Co-Founder of Sweet Farm Foundation


11:05 PDT / 19:05 CET: Networking Break

11:20 PDT / 19:20 CET: Panel Discussion | Sustainable Investing

Learn what US investors are actively looking for when promoting the shift to a sustainable, climate-conscious food system globally with

  • Therése Dalebrant, Investment Manager & Head of Strategy at Gullspång Re:food 

  • Craig Bell, Director at Center of Excellence - Ag Solar at Valmont Industries, Inc. 

  • Renske Lynde, Partner at 1st Course Capital; Co-Founder & CEO at Food System 6

Moderated by Nate Salpeter, General Partner at SNØCAP; Co-Founder of Sweet Farm Foundation


12:20 PDT / 20:20 CET: Networking Lunch

13:05 PDT / 21:05 CET: Fireside Chat | Work x Food: Alternate Governance Models in Food- & Ag-Tech

Discuss the recent movements in the alternate government space in agriculture with

  • J Noven, Executive Director at Berkeley Student Food Collective

  • Lars Johansson, Founding Partner at Burks Johansson LLP & Silicon Vikings

Moderated by Abigail Richardson, US Food Tech Co-Lead at Business Sweden USA


14:05 PDT / 22:05 CET: Fireside Chat | Scaling an International Ag-Tech Business

Learn how to strategically scale your ag-tech business internationally with

  • Bakur Kvezereli, CEO at Ztractor

  • ​​​​​​​Beau Perry, CEO & Founder at Blue Evolution; CEO at Blu3.io

Moderated by Jessica Connelly, US Food Tech Co-Lead & Project Manager at Business Sweden USA

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14:50 PDT / 22:50 CET: Closing Remarks
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