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From lab to
market — with
senior expertise.

New Ingredient Collective Europe

A networked collective of seasoned food technology and ingredient experts. We scale, validate and commercialise emerging ingredients — for ventures, producers and investors.

Food Ingredients Scale-Up & Validation Commercialisation Investment Advisory
Start with a NICE Scan How We Work
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100+
Years combined experience
6
Senior domain experts
23
Partnerships served

About NICE

What we do &
how we work

01

Our Mission

NICE is a networked collective of seasoned experts dedicated to creating, scaling, implementing and investing in food technology, food ingredients and bio-mass valorisation. We bring collective intelligence to every engagement.

02

Our Services

From opportunity sourcing and innovation due diligence to strategic portfolio construction and hands-on scale-up support — connecting emerging producers with demand partners and making it happen.

03

Our Expertise

Senior experts with extensive experience scaling from exploration to commercialisation in both global companies and emerging ventures — as innovating entrepreneurs and executives who understand the journey and its pitfalls.

Target Segments

Where we
create value

Emerging Ventures

Startups & Scaleups

  • Technical consulting & process optimisation
  • Market analysis & competitive assessment
  • Business development & BD strategy
  • Mentorship, coaching & pitch preparation
  • Hands-on scale-up partnership

F&B Producers

Food & Beverage Companies

  • Ingredient sourcing & evaluation
  • Formulation & product development
  • Sustainability assessments
  • Regulatory compliance guidance
  • Innovation strategy & second opinion

Investors

Funds & Strategics

  • Opportunity sourcing via our network
  • Technical & commercial due diligence
  • Portfolio scale-up support
  • Ecosystem & demand partner connections
  • Risk assessment & market validation

NICE Scans

The fastest way to
get expert eyes on
your challenge

NICE Scans are our signature entry service — structured, time-efficient assessments that deliver clarity fast. They allow us to quickly map real needs, identify repeatable patterns, and establish trust before committing to deeper engagements. Three focused scan types, each designed for a specific decision point.

A

Scan Type A

Scale Readiness Scan

A rapid assessment to determine if a venture is truly ready to move on the scaling path. Identifies technical, operational and organisational gaps to ensure first-time-right scale-up steps.

Ideal for: Emerging ventures pre-Series A/B who need independent validation before investor conversations or pilot investments.

  1. Intro call — clarify goals, context, ambitions
  2. Structured online intake (SWOT, PESTEL, demand map)
  3. Live on-site workshop with cross-functional ideation
  4. Expert analysis — technology match, economics, benchmarking
  5. Outcome report + prioritised roadmap presentation
Indicative fee: €12,500 excl. travel & VAT · 3 expert days + coordination + reporting
B

Scan Type B

Opportunity Scan

A structured exploration to pinpoint the top 2–5 high-value opportunities for demand partners. Reveals where innovation creates real business impact — fast, focused, and market-driven.

Ideal for: F&B companies seeking to integrate novel ingredients but unsure where to start or how to prioritise the innovation pipeline.

  1. Intake — map current portfolio, priorities, constraints
  2. Opportunity landscape mapping across ingredient categories
  3. Feasibility signals and early economics per opportunity
  4. Network-facilitated supplier/partner matching
  5. Report with ranked opportunities and next-step roadmap
Indicative fee: €12,500 excl. travel & VAT · 3 expert days + coordination + reporting
C

Scan Type C

Competitive Analysis Scan

A clear benchmark of how a technology or ingredient performs against alternatives. Defines differentiation, white space, and positioning to strengthen the go-to-market story.

Ideal for: Investors conducting technical due diligence, or ventures preparing for fundraising who need an independent competitive perspective.

  1. Technology and ingredient landscape review
  2. Competitive benchmarking against key alternatives
  3. White space and differentiation analysis
  4. Regulatory and commercialisation context
  5. Positioning report with go-to-market recommendations
Indicative fee: €12,500 excl. travel & VAT · 3 expert days + coordination + reporting
Book a NICE Scan →

How We Engage

Flexible. Focused.
Results-Driven.

Advisory

Expert support on a temporary or ongoing basis. Fixed-price projects with defined scope and deliverables. Clear accountability, clear outcomes.

Ad Interim

Strategic temporary roles — from Senior Lead to CTO, CCO, COO. Execute scale, drive efficient progress, avoid delay and failure. Recruitment and team building included.

Mentorship

Focused acceleration for business model refinement, scaling strategies and operational progress. For founders who want to move faster and with confidence.

Partnerships

We connect you with the right partners, investors and distributors — then facilitate to successful close. Our network is your network.

Training

Hands-on workshops on tech insights, market trends, how to scale, and pragmatic strategy. From half-day to multi-session programmes.

Due Diligence

Independent technical and commercial assessments for investment and strategic decisions. Clear, actionable outcomes with no vested interest.

The NICE difference

"We are senior practitioners with solid academic background. We engage, think, roll up our sleeves and make it happen." — The NICE Collective

Doers. Thoughtful.

Every member has personally scaled products, built companies and navigated the complex landscapes of food, tech and ingredients. We have lived the journey.

Networked, Engaging

Collective intelligence — we combine specialisms (science, lab, engineering, ops, commercial, regulatory) on every engagement for the strongest possible team.

European Focus, Equipped

Deep roots in European ingredient ecosystems from field to fork, from molecule to packaged product. Connected to Food Valley NL, EIT Food, Planet B.io and beyond.

100+ Years of Experience

Over a century of cumulative innovation and scale-up experience available for your tech and business challenges — right-sized to your need.

The Collective

Our team of
senior experts

Five senior practitioners — each a domain leader who has personally built, scaled and commercialised food technologies and ingredients across Europe and globally.

Member
Dr Michael Zviely

Dr Michael Zviely

Chemistry & Digital Sensory

Accomplished chemist, global R&D and business leader, and pioneer in the digitisation of flavors and fragrances. With over 20 patents and 60 publications, he has held senior roles at Frutarom, O'Laughlin, and ReSugar, and now co-founds Mamay Technologies, advancing digital sensory communication worldwide.

Member
Mike Vermeer

Mike Vermeer

Commercialisation & Strategy

Entrepreneurial executive with a solid academic foundation (MBA, MM), dedicated to driving transformative growth across diverse plant-derived sectors. Drawing on extensive experience developing actionable strategies that enhance value creation, foster winning cultures, and unlock shared revenue streams for collective success.

Member
Dr Andreas Heyl

Dr Andreas Heyl

Scaling & Go to Market

Over 25 years of experience in chemical, biochemical, and food ingredient industries, complemented by building and scaling a successful, well-funded synthetic biology start-up. Translating technical insight into scalable development paths, industrial partnerships, and robust go-to-market execution.

Member
Wim de Laat

Wim de Laat

Fermentation & Protein

Experienced fermentation and downstream specialist from lab scale to full production scale in a commercial applied R&D setting. Expert in small molecules and enzymes using bacteria, yeast or fungi, including basic engineering studies, Technical Economic Evaluations, and regulatory compliance.

Member
Dr Fernando Schved

Dr Fernando Schved

Sweeteners & Fibers

Three decades of technological expertise in the food ingredients & nutrition markets. Expert in sweeteners, dietary fibers and probiotics. Combines technological and BD abilities with a realistic view. Has played CTO, CSO and VP BD roles at leading ingredient companies.

Full profiles and accolades available on request · New members pending

Knowledge Library

Insights from
the Collective

Industry Analysis

The Rise of AI in the Flavors & Fragrances Industry

Dr Michael Zviely · NICE, 2026

How AI is revolutionising F&F — from Givaudan's Carto and Symrise's Philyra to MAMAY Technologies' Organoleptic Digitizer. Covers AI-driven formulation, plant-based flavour innovation, sensory digitisation, and the future of personalised scent and taste.

AI · Flavours · Sensory↓ Download PDF

Research Paper

Sweetness Prediction Based on Chemo-Physical Parameters Powered by Machine Learning

Dr Michael Zviely · NICE, 2026

A machine-learning algorithm forecasting relative sweetness values using only 2D physicochemical descriptors — no sensory panels required. Evaluated across 54 sweeteners with R² of 0.9969 and median error of 6.3%.

Sweeteners↓ Download PDF

Industry Insight

Beyond the Food Tech Promise: A Solid Strategy for Ingredient Innovation

Mike Vermeer · NICE / Novactum, 2025

How ingredient suppliers must move from aspiration marketing to evidence-based commercial partnership — covering total COGS, formulation switch ease, scale-up certainty, and the Intel Inside co-branding model. Grounded in Kotler's marketing principles.

Strategy↓ Download PDF

Industry Insight

The Scale-Up Gap: Why Most Food Ingredient Ventures Stall Between Lab and Market

Dr Andreas Heyl · NICE, 2026

An analysis of the structural reasons food tech ventures fail during scale-up — from process economics to organisational readiness — and what senior advisors can do to close the gap.

Scale-Up2026 · Article

Case Study

Fermentation Scale-Up: From Lab Enzyme to Industrial Production

Wim de Laat · NICE, 2025

A step-by-step walkthrough of a successful fermentation scale-up project — from initial Technical Economic Assessment to validated industrial process, including regulatory milestones.

Fermentation2025 · Case Study

Industry Insight

GLP-1 Therapies, Nutrition & the Prebiotic Fiber Opportunity

Dr Fernando Schved · NICE, March 2026

GLP-1 therapies are reshaping food and nutrition strategy. This paper examines the nutritional risks of reduced intake, the role of prebiotic fibers (inulin, sc-FOS, oligofructose) in complementing GLP-1 therapy, and the innovation opportunity for F&B companies at the intersection of clinical nutrition and ingredient science.

Fibers · GLP-1 · Health↓ Download PDF

Want to become a NICE member? Submit your paper, article or case study to be assessed.

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Market Context

The industry is at
an inflection point.
NICE is ready.

PwC's Voice of the Consumer 2025 — surveying 21,075 consumers across 28 countries — paints a vivid picture of a food industry under pressure and full of opportunity. The signals are clear. The window to act is now.

62%

Ultra-processed food concern

Of consumers cite ultra-processed foods and pesticide use as more important than price or nutrition — creating urgent demand for clean, functional ingredient innovation.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Ingredient validation & reformulation advisory

51%

Demand targeted health products

Consumers expect food producers to lead health innovation. Companies that cannot source, formulate or validate functional ingredients fast enough will lose ground.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Opportunity Scan B for F&B producers

$9.88tn

Food ecosystem value by 2035

PwC projects the global food system to reach nearly $10 trillion GVA by 2035 — driven by convergence across health, tech and ingredients. Early movers define the value capture.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Investment due diligence & portfolio support

70%

Use health apps or wearables

Tech-driven nutrition is mainstream. Ingredients that can claim functional, measurable health benefits — backed by science — are positioned to capture premium market share.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Science-backed ingredient positioning

47%

Open to GenAI in meal planning

Consumers are ready for AI-driven personalised nutrition. Ventures combining food tech with data intelligence need expert partners who understand both the science and the market.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Scale-up & go-to-market for food tech ventures

44%

Willing to pay more for sustainability

A large and growing segment will pay a premium for sustainably produced food — but only if the claims are credible and verified. Independent expert validation is the key differentiator.

NICE OPPORTUNITY → Sustainability assessments & regulatory compliance

"The only way to meet the consumer demand for food being healthy, convenient and affordable is for the ecosystem players to rethink how they collaborate, innovate and share risk."

— ELIZABETH HORVATH, VP MARKETING NORTH AMERICA, KERRY · SOURCE: PWC VOICE OF THE CONSUMER 2025

See how NICE can help →

Get in Touch

Ready to scale?
Let's talk.

Start with a NICE Scan — the fastest way to get expert eyes on your challenge and a clear path forward. Or reach out to explore how we can work together.

Based in Europe

Based across Europe with Global reach

Operating Entity

NICE — operating through Novactum

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