S T R A T E G Y

Turn insight into decisions that ship.

A jar of Black Mamba LISHISA African Tomato Relish with a red label, black lid, and black and white text, positioned on a matching red background.

A black hairbrush with a rounded handle and fine bristles, seen from the top, on a white surface.

Three orange boxes with sunburst designs and the words "SUN FOOD" and "Solar-heating soups" written on them, arranged on a white surface.

A person holding a wine glass filled with a golden, slightly cloudy beverage, with a frothy head, against a plain light background, casting a shadow.

A person holding a bone-shaped cookie with a light brown color on a stainless steel surface, with more cookies visible in the background.

A thick, orange, curved brushstroke on a white background.

Assorted jars of traditional Mexican sauces with colorful labels, including salsa, arañaza, borrego, and leche, arranged on a dark surface with colorful boxes and a brown paper sign in the background.

Strategy work succeeds or fails on the quality of the insight underneath it. Most consultancies start with desk research. We start with our network.

Mycelium's 100+ practitioners — chefs, producers, food technologists, researchers, designers — work inside the food system every day across 30+ countries.

That access gives us ingredient-level, consumer-level, and supply-chain-level intelligence that doesn't surface in standard reports. We combine it with rigorous analysis to build strategies that are both grounded and unconventional — and we stay with the work past the deck. New products we've helped shape have made it to retail shelves; market analyses we've delivered have reframed how research centres position emerging ingredients; tourism strategies we've co-designed have become EU-funded projects.

What we deliver

New product development — from insight generation and ethical concepting through formulation and route-to-market. Work has included an edible spoon, products from underused crops, and an Eswatini entrepreneur product line that launched at retail through our UN ITC engagement.
Market analysis & opportunity mapping — sizing, positioning, and competitive landscapes for new ingredients, formats, and categories, across geographies.
Ingredient sourcing & global scanning — exploring natural ingredients and sourcing strategies for premium brands like Valrhona and SOSA.
Regional development strategy — gastronomic tourism, food-systems planning, and culinary identity for governments and tourism boards.
Consumer validation — focus groups, sensory work, and field research with the people who'll actually buy.

Insight Generation

Research projects

We analyze market trends, consumer behavior, and industry developments to provide actionable strategies that drive growth. By uncovering innovative solutions and staying ahead of the curve, we can empower our clients to thrive in a competitive industry.

A large crowd of people walking in a busy city street, with some holding umbrellas. There are traffic signs overhead and buildings in the background.

Insight Generation:

User Research:

Understand your target audience deeply through directed interviews, focus groups, and real-context testing. We're not just analysts; we're food practitioners who develop unique insights from our extensive field experience.

Qualitative Research:

By leveraging our vast global network, we enable a connection to more industry professionals; they facilitate valuable insights into market trends and emerging demands.

Theoretical Research:

As knowledge brokers, we provide the most up-to-date information so you can inform ideation processes with the latest scientific findings and trusted sources.

Expert Ideation Sessions:

We curate our team of experts based on your needs, tapping into their collective intelligence to create new concepts and innovative ideas from a global, multidisciplinary perspective.

Hands holding a white sealed packet, with several similar packets in a white holder on a wooden table.

Concepting and Formulation Services:

A diverse group of people sitting around a conference table in a modern office, engaged in a meeting. There is a large monitor, laptops, and sticky notes on the wall.

Expert Ideation Sessions:

We harness collective intelligence for agile concept development and formulation.

A man with a beard and short hair eating salad from an orange bowl, standing in front of colorful artwork.

Chefs Remote Tasting:

We utilize chef expertise to diversify innovation and avoid groupthink.

Women and a man working in a greenhouse growing lettuce. The woman in the foreground, wearing a red and black checkered shirt and yellow apron, is holding a head of lettuce. The man in the background, wearing a plaid shirt and apron, is tending to the plants. The greenhouse has bright natural light and rows of green leafy vegetables.

Circular Product Development & LCA:

We measure environmental impact and integrate circular practices.

Person holding a tablet displaying colorful bar and pie charts, with printed charts and graphs on the table.

Business Opportunity Analysis:

We deeply analyze the market, competition, industry, and technical feasibility.

Close-up of a person's mouth, with lips slightly parted revealing teeth and tongue sticking out.

Sensory Analysis:

We design in-depth evaluations to meet your product objectives.

A woman working in a laboratory, using a laptop and surrounded by glassware and scientific equipment.

Formulation:

We develop scalable lab-scale formulations and assist in creating sustainable scale-up strategies.

A woman with dark hair in a bun, wearing a denim shirt and striped apron, holds a black plastic container filled with fresh green vegetables at an outdoor farmers market with baskets of vegetables on the table.

Ethical Product Design:

We help you promote and ensure transparency and responsibility in ingredient sourcing and labor practices.

Product Scientific Characterization:

We provide insights into physical properties, composition, chemical analysis, sensory evaluation, stability testing, and packaging assessment.

A scientist wearing gloves and a lab coat working with petri dishes containing red and orange biological samples in a laboratory setting.

Chef Creative Studio:

We establish a dedicated environment to amplify chef creativity by tapping into your team's insights and ideas and a diverse, global network of food experts.

A female chef in a white uniform and hat preparing food in a kitchen, with plates and dishes visible in the foreground.

Concepting and Formulation

Development

We help you develop market-ready products. Our process involves creating or refining product concepts, ensuring they align with ultimate objectives and resonate with your target audience. Through research, brainstorming, and precise formulation, we bring visions to life, addressing all relevant aspects, infusing innovation, and monitoring market trends to ensure you provide a competitive edge.

Route to Market

We ensure your winning products make it to the shelves and thrive there. Our services encompass every aspect of this last part of the journey, from connecting you with suitable suppliers to ensuring you navigate the legal requirements and more. By tapping into our diverse network and extensive market knowledge, we can unveil new culinary applications and identify additional markets for your products.

A grocery store aisle filled with various packaged food products, including snacks, canned goods, and condiments, neatly arranged on multiple shelves.

Route to Market Services:

Sourcing:

We help you discover the ideal suppliers for your product using the help of our extensive global network.

Regulatory Guidelines:

We assist you in navigating the legal prerequisites for launching your product.

Retail Strategy:

We support you in developing a comprehensive plan to bring your product to the shelves, including recommended SKU selection and precise logistics and planning.

Culinary Innovation and Market Expansion:

Using our field expertise and collective knowledge, we can come up with unexpected culinary applications and tap into new market opportunities for your product.

Got a food-industry decision you need to ship?

Market analysis, new product development, regional strategy, sourcing. Tell us the question — we'll compose the right team from our 100+ practitioners and come back with decision-ready outputs your team can actually implement.

Start a Strategy project

Case Studies

ITC × Eswatini Entrepreneurs

Mycelium worked with the UN's International Trade Centre and Eswatini entrepreneurs to develop new food products — two of which are now on retail shelves.

Gastronomic Tourism Opportunities for Navarra

A bottom-up gastronomic tourism strategy for Navarra — defining the priority areas that later shaped the region's Sustainable Gastronomy Manifesto.

Global Scanning of Natural Ingredients (Valrhona & SOSA)

Mycelium scanned the globe for natural ingredients with special functional properties — a co-exploration project for two of Europe's leading fine-food houses, Valrhona and SOSA.

Wasted-Crops Products, Ecuador (Mashpi / Fundación Futuro)

Retail-ready products from underused crops, now on Mashpi Lodge's weekly purchasing list — new income for 11 women producers, value for Ecuadorian conservation.

Microalgae Market Analysis

49 in-depth interviews across Spain, France and Germany — Mycelium mapped the path to mainstream adoption for microalgae as a food ingredient.