2025 – EPC for IUNS Task Forces  

IUNS Task Forces aim to tackle important nutrition-related issues that need collaboration from different parts of the world. Each Task Force focuses on a current or emerging issue in nutrition that require joint efforts and is not getting enough attention or faces challenges. We have partnered with IUNS for a special edition of Elevator Pitch Contest and will be selecting up to 5 Task Forces at the upcoming IUNS-ICN 2025.

2023 – Women Deliver: Fixing Food Systems 

@Women Deliver Conference, Kigali, Rwanda, 18 July

In collaboration with the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation and the Eleanor Crook Foundation, Sight and Life hosted the first live edition of the Elevator Pitch Contest since COVID at the Women Deliver Conference in Rwanda. Six female entrepreneurs pitched their disruptive ideas to help end hunger.

2023 – Food Systems Live!  

@ Online, held along with Havard University, January to March 2023

Over 300 young entrepreneurs joined our Entrepreneurship Training course Food Systems Live! Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies, in collaboration with Harvard University. Aspiring and young entrepreneurs learned the fundamentals of building a scalable business plan from Harvard Business School Professors Tarun Khanna, Caroline Elkins and Karim Lakhani and the top 3 winners were selected in an Elevator Pitch Contest as a grand finale.

2021 – Fermentation enabled Alternate Proteins  

@Micronutrient Forum, Online, 10-13 November 

The central theme of this EPC addressed the urgent need to transform protein production in light of environmental degradation, climate change, and public health risks posed by industrial animal agriculture. By spotlighting innovations in fermentation, whether traditional, precision, or biomass methods, the contest aimed to inspire and support novel food products that can contribute to more sustainable, nutritious, and accessible diets. Given the projected rise in global protein demand and the environmental toll of current systems, fermentation-based solutions were highlighted as a promising pathway to meet future nutritional and ecological goals.

2020 – Pandemic Proof Innovations: Seeking solutions to deliver nutrition to those who need it most during COVID 2019 

@Micronutrient Forum 5th Global Conference, Online, 10-13 November

The contest specifically aimed to address the disruptions in nutrition programs and systems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. By targeting five key systems (health, food, biological, digital, and knowledge systems) the contest sought innovative, scalable, and resilient ideas that could mitigate the pandemic’s impact on global nutrition, especially in low- and middle-income settings. The goal was to inspire short-term, high-impact solutions that maintain and improve nutrition outcomes despite the challenges posed by COVID-19.

2020 – Climate-Smart Nutrition 

@ Online, held along with UNITLife (= innovation fund hosted by the UN), 6  August

As climate-related disruptions increasingly threaten food systems, the contest aimed to support early-stage ideas and start-ups that promote sustainable, resilient, and nutrition-focused approaches to food and agriculture. The selected finalists presented solutions from diverse sectors such as food, environment, and renewable energy, highlighting the urgent need for integrated innovations that can improve nutrition while mitigating climate impact.

2019 – The Innovation Challenge: Aspirational and Affordable Nutritious Food Products 

@ Ghana Industrial Summit and Exhibition (GISE), Ghana, Accra, 12 September

This edition of the Elevator Pitch Contest centered on aspirational and affordable nutritious food innovations to combat micronutrient deficiencies, particularly in Ghana. The contest aimed to support scalable, food-based solutions that improve the diets of women and children by encouraging entrepreneurship among students and startups. Given the high prevalence of anemia, iodine deficiency, stunting, and the growing double burden of malnutrition in Ghana, the EPC provided a platform for disruptive ideas designed to move the nutrition landscape beyond traditional approaches.

2018 – Disruptive food and non-food solutions for an aflatoxin-free food system

@19th World Congress of Food Science and Technology, Mumbai, India, 23-28 October

Aflatoxins are highly toxic compounds that contaminate staple crops, posing serious health risks such as liver cancer and child growth impairment, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. They also have major economic consequences, including trade losses and food waste. This contest aimed to find innovative approaches to reduce or eliminate aflatoxin exposure, improve food safety, and strengthen agricultural trade and nutrition security.

2018 – Seeking Innovation in Nutrition Assessment

@American Society for Nutrition’s “Nutrition 2018”, United States, Boston, 9-12 June

This edition of the Elevator Pitch Contest focused on innovation in nutrition assessment. The goal was to identify groundbreaking ideas such as new tools, technologies, or services that could make measuring nutritional status more accurate, affordable, and scalable, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Improving nutrition assessment is essential, as current methods are often costly and logistically complex, limiting the availability of reliable data needed for effective interventions.

2016 – The Future of Micronutrient Innovation 

@Micronutrient Forum, Mexico, Cancun, 24-28 October 

The first edition of the Elevator Pitch Contest focused on tackling micronutrient deficiencies through innovative and entrepreneurial ideas. Students and young professionals were invited to pitch novel products, technologies, or services that range from supplements and diagnostics to digital tools and business models. The goal was to spark fresh thinking, encourage youth engagement in the nutrition space, and identify promising solutions that could help close the global micronutrient gap.