Young IFFI Event | Food in Mind

Name: Young IFFI Event | Food in Mind
Start: 2026-05-19T00:00:00+02:00
End: 2026-05-19T23:59:59+02:00
Location: KNVB Campus

Discover how personal development and industry insight come together at the Young IFFI Event 2026. This inspiring one-day event ‘Food in Mind’ is designed for young professionals and final-year students who want to grow their impact in the food ingredients industry.

19 May 2026

Young IFFI Event – Food in Mind

This year, the Young IFFI Event takes place at the inspiring KNVB Campus, where health, movement, teamwork and continuous improvement come together.

Theme 1: Personal Performance
Turn insight into action. Explore how you manage focus, energy and pressure and how to strengthen your own sustainable performance. Former atlete Gregory Sedoc will share his compelling story about his success, the challenges, disappointments, and mental obstacles he had to overcome.

Theme 2: The Gut–Brain Axis
Discover how the gut and brain communicate, what science tells us about stress, nutrition and the microbiome, and what this means for innovation in the ingredients industry. Keynote speaker is Prof. Dr. Esther Aarts, a Principal Investigator at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, heading the Food & Cognition research group at the Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging.

From science to self. From microbiome to mindset.
Join us for a dynamic day where Food in Mind connects biology, innovation and personal growth.

Blue and Purple Simple Opening Soon Banner (354 x 81 px)

ABOUT

Young IFFI Event | Food in Mind

From Gut–Brain Science to Personal Performance

This year, the Young IFFI Event takes place at the inspiring KNVB Campus in Zeist, a place where health, movement, teamwork and continuous improvement are at the core.

The theme of the day: Food in Mind.

Part 1: Personal Development in Practice

How do you perform under pressure? How do you manage energy, focus and decision-making in demanding environments? And how can you strengthen your own sustainable performance? Former atlete Gregory Sedoc will share his compelling story about his success, the challenges, disappointments, and mental obstacles he had to overcome.

Through interactive and hands-on formats, we’ll connect biological insight to personal effectiveness, because understanding the system only matters if you can apply it.

Part 2: The Gut–Brain Axis
How do the gut and brain communicate? What role do stress, nutrition and the microbiome play in mental performance? And what does this mean for innovation in the ingredients industry?

Expect evidence-based insights, practical translation, and interactive sessions where you’ll explore how gut–brain science connects to your professional world.

Keynote speaker is Prof. Dr. Esther Aarts, a Principal Investigator at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, heading the Food & Cognition research group at the Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging.

Why this setting?

At the KNVB Campus, home of Dutch elite football, the focus is on becoming better every day. The perfect environment to explore how nutrition, mindset and performance come together.

Join fellow young professionals for a day of learning, connection and inspiration and discover how Food in Mind shapes both innovation and personal growth.

PROGRAM

09:30 – 10:00
Walk-in and registration

10:00 – 10:05 hrs
Welcome by moderator Marte Schuurmans

10:05 – 10:10 hrs
Opening by Thijs van de Water, Young IFFI

10:10 – 10:55 hrs
Keynote lecture by Gregory Sedoc
Former athlete, analyst and speaker

Break-out sessions

10:55 – 11:25 hrs

‘Energy & Focus under Pressure’

Amber Overmeer, Talent Manager EMEA, ADM

‘Stress Responses at Work’

Esmé Smulders, Global Manager Talent, Interfood

Break

11:25 – 11:40 hrs

Break-out sessions

Lead by the Young IFFI Board

11:40– 12:10 hrs

Energy & Focus under pressure
Stress responses at work

Lunch

12:40 – 13:20 hrs

Keynote

Keynote door Prof. Dr. Esther Aarts, Donders Institute

13:25 – 14:10 hrs

14:10 – 14:25 hrs
Q&A + interactive poll

Break-out sessions

11:40– 12:10 hrs

‘From nutritional claim to consumer’

Introduction by Carina Ponne, Director Innovation EMEA, Bunge

‘From nutrional value to food application’

Introduction by Marjoleine Bartels-Arntz, Technical Sales Specialist, FrieslandCampina

‘From nutritional claim to food ingredient’

Introduction by Judith van Peij-Visser, Innovation Director Baking & Confectionary, DSM-Firmenich

Break

15:20 – 15:45 hrs

Closing Session

16:15 – 16:20 hrs

Thijs van de Water, Young IFFI

Bites & Drinks

16:20 – 20:00 hrs

SPEAKERS

Gregory Sedoc, former atlete, analist and speaker

Graceful like a cheetah, Gregory Sedoc sprinted over hurdles for many years, a journey that took him to the Olympic Games three times. What he overcame on and off the track cannot be contained in a single backpack of experiences. The highest hurdles included a one-year suspension from competition, an injury at the following Olympic Games in London in 2012, and the depression that filled the black void afterward. Gregory regrouped and rediscovered his passion on the track, bringing the circle to a close.

The little boy who, when he missed the bus home, would run from his primary school at Olympiaplein all the way home, eventually ended his impressive career at the 2016 European Championships on home ground, in the Olympic Stadium.

Today, he hosts his own television program Sportlab Sedoc, in which he explores the world of elite sports, and he is a highly regarded analyst for NOS. In his inspiring presentations, he touches on a wide range of themes, including vitality, innovation, and data.

Prof. Dr. Esther Aarts, Donders Institute

Prof. Dr. Esther Aarts is a Principal Investigator at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, heading the Food & Cognition research group at the Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging. Her research focuses on neural mechanisms of eating behavior as well as how the foods we consume impact our brain functioning, using functional neuroimaging. Many effects of diet on neuro-cognition happen through the gut microbiome and immune system. She and her group are studying these peripheral-central links particularly in relation to dopamine-related brain functions such as motivational and cognitive control. Esther Aarts has been awarded several personal grants, such as a Niels Stensen stipend (for her postdoctoral work at UC Berkeley, USA), an AXA Research Fund fellowship, an NWO-Veni grant, and an ERC starting grant. Esther Aarts is also the main applicant and project leader of the public-private NWO-crossover project MOCIA, a personalised prevention approach for maintaining optimal cognitive function in aging.

PARTICIPANTS

Registration

This network meeting is exclusive to:

Young professionals employed by the IFFI member companies
BSc and MSc graduates from food related (HBO/university) studies
Teaching staff at food related educational institutions
Young professionals working at a non-IFFI member company

Costs & participation

For IFFI members, students, graduates and teaching staff, attendance is free of costs
Participation fee for young professionals, working at a non-IFFI member company, an invoice for € 450 ex VAT will be sent.
Participation is subject to final confirmation by the committee

Cancellation
For cancellations received after May 15, an invoice of € 50 will be sent.

EVENT INFO

Registration

This network meeting is exclusive to:

Young professionals employed by the IFFI member companies
BSc and MSc graduates from food related (HBO/university) studies
Teaching staff at food related educational institutions
Young professionals working at a non-IFFI member company

Costs & participation

For IFFI members, students, graduates and teaching staff, attendance is free of costs
Participation fee for young professionals, working at a non-IFFI member company, an invoice for € 450 ex VAT will be sent.
Participation is subject to final confirmation by the committee

Cancellation
For cancellations received after May 15, an invoice of € 50 will be sent.