Food as Medicine: Precision Nutrition, Business Models & Access | Milan Longevity Summit 2026

*What if food becomes one of our most powerful tools for prevention, and what will it take to make that promise accessible at scale?* The relationship between nutrition and health is entering a new era. Advances in biotechnology, diagnostics, microbiome science, metabolomics, and personalised nutrition are allowing us to understand with increasing precision how food and specific nutrients interact with individual biology. But translating that science into better health requires more than discovery. In this panel from the *Vitality Stage at the Milan Longevity Summit 2026*, *Nélida Leiva Eriksson, Florian Müller, and Christian Pichler* join moderator *Antonio Iannone* to explore the emerging market for food as medicine and the innovations, products, and business models that could bring precision nutrition into everyday life. The conversation brings together perspectives from *biotechnology, functional nutrition, product development, and business* to examine how new science is changing what food can do. How can bioactive compounds and functional ingredients be translated into effective products? Where is biotechnology opening new possibilities for nutrition and prevention? How do companies build credible business models around emerging health science? And what needs to happen for personalised and functional nutrition to move beyond early adopters and become accessible to much broader populations? The panel also explores one of the defining challenges for the sector: *evidence and accessibility must evolve alongside innovation*. If food is to play a greater role in prevention and healthy longevity, consumers need products they can trust, businesses need models that can scale, and healthier choices need to be available beyond premium markets. *Speakers:* • Nélida Leiva Eriksson – Chief Executive Officer, Ironic Biotech • Florian Müller – Member of the Executive Board, Colostrum BioTec • Christian Pichler – Chairman and Managing Director, GERBER-RAUTH • Moderated by Antonio Iannone – Founder & Chief Executive Officer, The FoodCons Ultimately, the promise of food as medicine is not simply about creating a new generation of functional products. *It is about connecting nutrition science, biotechnology, business, and access to make food a more powerful part of how we prevent disease and support healthier lives.* *Powered by Terme de Montel* The *Vitality Stage* at the Milan Longevity Summit explores how innovation moves from ideas and scientific breakthroughs into the markets, technologies, products, services, and business models shaping healthier lives and a healthier planet. *Learn more about the Milan Longevity Summit:* https://www.milanlongevitysummit.org/speakers26 #MilanLongevitySummit #FoodAsMedicine #PrecisionNutrition #FoodInnovation #Nutrition #Biotechnology #FunctionalFoods #HealthyLongevity #Vitality #FutureOfFood