NESTLÉ RESEARCH AND SOLAR IMPULSE: A PARTNERSHIP TO SUSTAIN TWO PIONEERS
Nestlé Research converts exemplary scientific expertise and knowledge into product innovations. As a result of its partnership with Solar Impulse, Nestlé Research has created tailor-made nutrition to sustain the two pilots during their round-the-world mission.
The journey with Solar Impulse started 6 years ago with nutritional and physiological assessments of the pilots. This led to the development of meals adapted to their needs during the different phases of the flight (i.e. low and high altitude). Nestlé Research has also developed innovative lightweight, convenient packaging to provide safe food during extreme fluctuations in pressure and temperature.
Nestlé and Solar Impulse provide the ideal partnership to sustain the two pioneers. By providing tailored nutrition, Nestlé Research is helping sustain the pilots during their mission. The right nutrition is of paramount importance to completing the mission successfully alongside the state-of-the-art technology which has gone into building their aircraft. Through its unrivalled Nutritional R&D infrastructure, Nestlé is uniquely placed to collaborate with Solar Impulse, drawing on its 150 years of experience and global network of expertise.
Over 6 years, Nestlé Research has invested over 6’000 hours into the mission. Measuring energy expenditure, with state-of-the-art technology at the Nestlé Research Center in Lausanne, allowed Nestlé scientists to better understand, from physiological perspective, the individual nutritional needs of the pilots.
Nestlé Research created tailor-made nutritious meals, with different nutritional characteristics depending on the flight altitude (i.e. more carbohydrates, water and fat needed and smaller meals at high altitude; more proteins and bigger meals at low altitude). As loss in weight and muscle mass is common at high altitude, the food provided will help the pilots stay in good shape.
The packaging developed for these meals was also challenging. It is resistant to extreme fluctuations in pressure and temperature (from -20°C to +30°C) and has to be lightweight and convenient while delivering safe food.
“The partnership between Nestlé Research and Solar Impulse brings to life Nestlé’s promise to provide Good Food, Good Life to people in every part of the world. Being able to provide the right nutrition to the pilots in such extreme conditions shows the capabilities of Nestlé Research to offer superior nutrition and health in an innovative way.
André and Bertrand care about natural resources as much as we do at Nestlé. While they convey a message of hope for the future during their round-the-world journey, Nestlé is pursuing continuous improvement on environmental sustainability through our Creating Shared Value commitments.” Paul Bulcke, Nestlé CEO
Discover more on http://www.nestle.com/randd/solar-impulse