Food Circular Economy

Circular economy is a holistic approach that looks at the entire food cycle:

from the extraction of raw materials, through the design, production and distribution of a produce, to its longest possible use phase and its re-cycling and or up-cycling

In order for products and materials to remain in this cycle, all industries that play a part in the food cycle need to rethink, improve and optimise their approach and start thinking about innovations.

Circular economy in our food industry needs to become the new model, designed to

minimise waste and to make the most out of all possible resources by creating a closed-loop system.

In the "circular" economy, the goal is to reduce waste and keep products, materials, and nutrients in use for as long as possible.

The linear economy, which ist still above average and predominately being used is best described with:

"resources being created, produced, consumed and then discarded"

We need to replace this traditional, old fashioned "linear" economy, towards a much more circular industry

The circular economy in our food industry needs to close the loop, or in other words, complete the circle, by redesigning food systems in ways that benefit the industry the planet and the people. Circular economy is a move towards sustainability, reducing environmental impact, and creating a more resilient food industry.

Some actions contributing to a more circular environment in our food industry could be as followed

1. Reducing Food Waste:

what kind of food waste are we actually talking about

• Pre-consumer waste: This refers to food waste before it reaches the consumers, this can be at farms or during the production in factories or even in restaurants (examples are trimmings, ugle produce etc.) . The circular approach might include redistributing surplus food, using imperfect produce, or repurposing by-products and side-streams (e.g., using parts of fruits or vegetables that would typically go to waste).

• Post-consumer waste: This refers to the food waste generated after the food has been consumed. A circular economy needs to focus on reducing food scraps and promoting composting, recycling, or reusing food waste (e.g., turning scraps into animal feed, or using food waste for energy or bio-based materials).

2. Sustainable Sourcing:

• Circular economy practices emphasise using sustainably grown and produced food that don't harm the environment. This includes choosing locally grown food, using regenerative agricultural practices, and promoting biodiversity.

3. Product Design & Packaging:

• Packaging plays a major role in the food industry, and the circular model aims to minimise single-use plastics and non-recyclable materials. Instead, businesses should adopt reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging.

4. Upcycling and Repurposing:

• Many businesses are finding creative ways to use or re-use food by-products and or side-streams that would otherwise go to waste. For example, turning coffee grounds into compost or using discarded fruit peels to create juices or snacks. It’s about getting the maximum value out of raw materials. Some modern but actually very very old practices growing in their popularity and making a successful comeback are for example, “leaf to root” and “nose to tail” where the maximum of any plant or any animal is used to create edible products.

6. Consumer Behavior:

• Consumers also play a very important part in the circular food economy by reducing food waste, recycling packaging, choosing sustainable products, and being mindful of their consumption.

A circular food industry can offer a much more sustainable and future-proof alternative compared to any linear food process. 

Through cooperation between farmers, producers, retailers, chefs and consumers, an efficient and environmentally friendly circular cycle can and should be created that protects both the environment and the livelihoods with resourses continuously being available for future generations.

My Question today?

How can we change the linear food process towards a more circular economy?.

There is only one answer to this question, which is: RAISING AWARENESS........ 

We should start by raising awareness and explaining what the benefits are from a circular and sustainable food industry, and additionally get all parts of the production process, including consumers connected, so they can support each other.

A good example, (and there are already several available) is to create online marketplaces where farmers and producers can place their surplus or side-stream or "ugly"produce

and where other producers or chefs can obtain these for an affordable price.

Other points to create awareness, especially for restaurants, should be the following;

1. Environmental protection: Reduction of waste and CO2 emissions

2. Preservation of resources: Efficient use an recycling of materials

3. Increase regionality: Promotion of local and seasonal products, which                     reduce the negative impact of transportation.

4. Promoting soil health: Composting improves soil fertility

5. Promoting Re-Cycling and Up-Cycling: "whats the difference between both?"

Re-Cycling

Restaurants can recycle food waste to recover materials or energy but unfortunately these do not necessarily add value beyond their original use.

Examples:

• Composting Food Scraps: Restaurants partner with composting services to turn organic kitchen waste (e.g., vegetable peels and coffee grounds) into biological fuels and soil fertilisers.

• Cooking Oil Recycling: Used cooking oil is collected and converted into biodiesel.Example: McDonald’s Europe recycles used fryer oil into biodiesel for its delivery trucks.

• Plastic and Cardboard Recycling: Sorting and recycling packaging materials from food and beverage deliveries.

Up-Cycling

Restaurants need to get more creative by transforming kitchen waste or surplus ingredients into new dishes or products with added value.

Examples:

• Bread Crusts into Breadcrumbs or Croutons: Stale bread can be toasted and used for gourmet croutons or house-made breadcrumbs.

• Vegetable Peels for Chips or Garnishes: Carrot or potato peels can be deep-fried or oven-roasted into crispy garnishes.Example: turning vegetable peels into delicate, crispy appetizers.

• Fruit Rinds into Syrups or Garnishes: fruit rinds can be used to make house-made syrups, marmalades, flavored oils or candied garnishes for cocktails, for example:

  Noma in Copenhagen is famous for fermenting and upcycling fruit scraps.

• Coffee Grounds for Desserts: Coffee grounds can be infused into desserts like ice creams, cakes and cookies or used as a base for rubs in savory dishes.

• Whey from Cheese Production: House-made ricotta can generate whey, which then

  can be turned into whey-based smoothies or sauces.

• Fish, meat trimmings into Stocks or Croquettes: Fish heads, meat trimmings and bones, can be transformed into flavourful stocks, sauces or crispy snacks. Restaurants specialising in nose-to-tail dining, use every part of the animal or fish or plant.

• Surplus Fruit for Fermentation: Overripe fruits can be fermented into vinegar, pickles, or sauces.

By creating this awareness towards Consumers, Producers, Restaurants, Chefs and Food-Engineers,

we can support the development of new and innovative technologies and infrastructures for a circular food-production and food-industry.

.

Some global examples of successful circular food industry implementations

ReGrained

ReGrained takes spent grain from the beer brewing process and transforms it into nutritious flour and snack bars. This approach prevents waste and adds value to a previously discarded by-product.

Toast Ale

Beer brewed with surplus bread, collected from Restaurants and bakeries

Too Good To Go

an app that connects consumers with restaurants, bakeries, and any kind of food stores offering unsold food at the end of the day at discounted prices to prevent food waste.

Valorisation of Orange Peels

A project led by researchers at the Polytechnic University of Valencia turns orange peels into biodegradable food packaging. This innovation adds value to citrus processing waste.

In general there are already many companies that are experimenting successfully with orange peels, transforming them into clothes and even building materials

RUB & STUB Restaurant

This Copenhagen-based restaurant creates gourmet meals exclusively from surplus and imperfect food ingredients that would otherwise be wasted, the amount of restaurants following or adapting this concept have increased immensely over the past years

Winnow Solutions

Winnow develops AI-powered solutions for food waste collection in commercial kitchens by tracking and evaluating all accumulated food waste. With this evaluation, restaurants can adjust and adapt their production processes to reduce overproduction and unnecessary food loss.

Coffee Waste Repurposing by Bio-Bean

Bio-Bean turns coffee waste into biofuels and coffee logs for heating homes. Their approach provides a new life for used coffee grounds that would otherwise go to landfill.

another example is using the coffee grounds as a soil that are very beneficial for growing mushrooms

Organic Valley

A farmer-owned cooperative that uses methane digesters to convert cow manure into renewable energy. This supports their goals of being carbon-positive while minimising waste.

Eosta

An organic food distributor that uses innovative laser labeling ("natural branding") on fruits and vegetables instead of plastic stickers, reducing packaging waste significantly.

By using either Upcycling or Recycling of products and by-products, Producers and Restaurants should then use these newly created products and produce as a marketing tool or as a USP to create even more awareness.

As you can see this circular food approach is growing and keeps increasing immensely in our food industry and the more we continue, the better and quicker the circularity of our food industry will grow, which will then positively support our industry and our global resources and the health of our planet

The more awareness we can create and spread, the more people will start experimenting themselves, which then results in an even more growing circular economy awareness and implementation.

lets start now, today, and all together .

PFJ 02.25