Univar Solutions Inc. announced a collaboration with The Hatchery Chicago, a nonprofit food business incubator, to foster food and beverage innovation in one of North America's largest incubator facilities. 

The Hatchery Chicago is now home to Univar Solutions new Food Solution Center, which is part of a specialized network of Solution Centers around the globe. These state-of-the-art centers of excellence include formulation labs, research and development centers and test kitchens that help deliver innovative solutions across a range of industries.

"At Univar Solutions, what we do is rooted in our purpose to help keep our communities healthy, fed, clean and safe. Launching a new Food Solution Center and sponsoring The Hatchery Chicago demonstrates our commitment to support local communities at the growing epicenter of food ingredient innovation," said Kevin Hack, vice president of global food ingredients at Univar Solutions. "As collaboration and innovation are at the heart of our Solution Centers, we are thrilled to be a part of the entrepreneurial and creative collaboration happening within this exciting development hub, to help our suppliers and customers find their next sustainable food innovation."

Through the company's work at The Hatchery Chicago, Univar Solutions hopes to foster a spirit of innovation and drive solutions for the technical challenges shaping the future of food. This includes helping to support The Hatchery Chicago's advancement of women owned and Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) owned businesses. 

Univar Solutions will focus on meeting consumer demands for the latest high-quality ingredients and developing clean label food products that help deliver on the need for healthier, more sustainable ingredients. Combining culinary science with application development support, Univar Solutions will work closely with its customers, suppliers and the local food and beverage community to nurture creative problem-solving and serve innovative formulations, recipes and ingredient kits to help brands of all sizes grow and thrive.     

"Our food scientists and technical specialists look forward to bringing better products to market at Univar Solutions' first dedicated Food Solution Center in North America," said Dr. Andrew Mint, director, global Solution Centers. "Having both culinary chefs and culinary development scientists collaborating under one roof will help take customer projects to the next level, driving technical excellence within the North America food industry and globally as we deliver innovative solutions together." 

Every day a diverse team of food scientists, chemists, culinary experts and multidisciplinary specialists come together to share the latest consumer insights and help solve real-world challenges. As a result, this team helps create valuable and more sustainable solutions that have the potential to transform the world – helping communities live healthier, cleaner, safer and better lives.

The Hatchery Chicago is one of the largest food and beverage incubators in the United States. Located on the West Side of Chicago, the facility helps enable BIPOC, women-owned, and community resident entrepreneurs to build and grow successful food and beverage businesses, provides job training and placement and helps create sustainable economic growth with new job opportunities. Univar Solutions is proud to sponsor these diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives through its dedicated Food Solution Center located onsite, which will focus on developing specialty food ingredient services and solutions while also contributing to the innovative West Side ecosystem. 

www.univarsolutions.com/industries/food-ingredients 

About Univar Solutions
Univar Solutions is a leading global specialty chemical and ingredient distributor representing a premier portfolio from the world's leading producers. With the industry's largest private transportation fleet and technical sales force, unparalleled logistics know-how, deep market and regulatory knowledge, formulation and recipe development, and leading digital tools, the Company is well-positioned to offer tailored solutions and value-added services to a wide range of markets, industries, and applications. While fulfilling its purpose to help keep communities healthy, fed, clean and safe, Univar Solutions is committed to helping customers and suppliers innovate and focus on Growing Together.