Sustainably safeguarding the health of 10 billion people, 10 million of whom live in Switzerland, and ensuring they have sufficient food is a complex challenge that requires a global approach. The Congress will open with insights from Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin, Head of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research, and Dr Mark Schneider, CEO of Nestlé. We will then focus on two main topics. First, we will look at the topic of functional food in the context of health and nutrition. We will be paying particular attention to the role it plays in the health context and the extent to which it can be seen as an alternative or supplement to medicines, either preventively or in a complementary role. Prof. Stefan Palzer, CTO of Nestlé, and Prof. Marcel Salathé, Joint Director of the EPFL AI Center, will be providing insights.
The second topic, security of food supply and access to medicines, will be addressed in input presentations by Prof. Patrick Aebischer, former President of EPFL and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of GESDA, Dr Catharina Boehme, Assistant Director General for External Relations at the WHO and Dr Jean-Marc Chappuis (Assistant Director of the Federal Office for Agriculture).
These will be followed by panel discussions with experts from the fields in question and an introduction to the new members of the SATW. The Congress will conclude with drinks at 5 p.m.
| Time | Programme |
|---|---|
| 12:30 – 1 p.m. | Attendees arrive |
| 1:00 – 1:25 p.m. | Welcome by Prof. Benoît Dubuis (SATW President) and Dr MD Ryan Carvalho (Head of Nestlé Research) |
| Address by Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin | |
| Keynote speech by Dr Mark Schneider (CEO of Nestlé) | Functional food in health and nutrition
Here we will be looking particularly at the significance of functional food in the context of health and whether it can provide an alternative, as well as exploring the issue of whether it can be used preventively or to complement the use of medicines. |
| 1:25 – 2:45 p.m. | Keynote speech by Prof. Stefan Palzer (CTO of Nestlé, by video link) |
| Keynote speech by Prof. Marcel Salathé (Joint Director of EPFL AI Center),
Food as Medicine: An Urgent Call for AI-driven Epidemiology |
|
| Panel discussion with: | |
| Prof. Laurence Genton (Head of Clinical Nutrition at Geneva University Hospitals) | |
| Prof. Stefan Palzer (CTO Nestlé, by video link) | |
| Prof. Marcel Salathé (Joint Director of EPFL AI Center) | |
| Emeritus Professor Erich Windhab (ETH, Full Member of the SATW) | |
| Facilitator: Michael McKay | |
| Keynote Speech Prof. Jan Wörner (President/Member acatech)
The Need for Strategic Sovereignity |
|
| 2:45 – 3:15 p.m. | Break |
| Security of food supply and access to medicines
We will be looking in particular at the question of how to safeguard access to sufficient food and medicines and what options are open to Switzerland to strengthen its security of supply in these areas. |
|
| 3:15 – 4:15 p.m. | Keynote speech by Prof. Patrick Aebischer (former President of EPFL and Vice-Chairman of the Board of GESDA) Challenges and opportunities related to the security of medicines and vaccines supply. |
| Keynote speech by Dr Catharina Boehme (Assistant Director General for External Relations at the WHO) | |
| Keynote speech by Dr Jean-Marc Chappuis (Assistant Director of the Federal Office for Agriculture) | |
| Panel discussion with: | |
| Prof. Patrick Aebischer (former President of EPFL and Vice-Chairman of the Board of GESDA) | |
| Dr. Ian Roberts (CTO Bühler and UBIF President) | |
| Dr Jean-Marc Chappuis (Assistant Director of the Federal Office for Agriculture) | |
| Christina Senn-Jakobsen (Managing Director of the Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley) | |
| Facilitator: Michael McKay | |
| Concluding section and outlook | |
| 4:15 – 5 p.m. | Welcome for new members |
| Farewell and outlook | |
| 5 p.m. | Drinks and networking |
