From waste to waist
Hottest trend in food startups is turning trash into products
From “trash cooking” gourmet dinners at Canadian restaurants to supermarket chains such as Loblaws getting into the business of ugly produce, the concept of wastebased products is moving toward the mainstream.
A new industry census conducted by non-profit coalition ReFED suggests there’s been a surge in the number of startups using food waste over the past three years.
The Washington Post reports that while in 2011, ReFED had identified a mere 11 companies, that number had doubled by 2013 and there are now 64.
“What was once considered ‘waste’ — or an accepted cost of doing business — is now seen as an asset and revenue generator,” Chris Cochran, executive director of ReFED, told The Washington
“As companies begin to track, measure, and understand food loss and waste, the economics of food waste solutions begin to look a lot more attractive.”
One of the food waste innovators ReFED identifies in its database is San Francisco-based ReGrained. The company upcycles “spent grain,” which is a nutritionally viable byproduct of the beer-making process. ReGrained started by baking bread using leftover grain and eventually moved into small-batch granola bars made with grains from local brewers.
“Our business is about tackling waste — but how do we do that withoutgrossingpeopleout?”ReGrained co-founder Dan Kurzrock told The
Washington Post. “That’s been part of the complication of dealing with this issue although it seems like perceptions have shifted.”
Second Harvest reports supermarkets in North America reject more than 30 per cent of fruits and vegetables they deem unattractive. And a 2013 Canadian Medical Association’s report showed that Canadians waste $31 billion of food each year, with 47 per cent of that waste occurring at home.
And while today’s innovators may be diverting waste on a small scale, multinational food companies are watching their business models closely, Jonathan Deutsch, professor of culinary arts and food science at Drexel University, Told the Washington Post.
“We’re at this phase where there are now proven models, and a lot of interest and excitement,” Deutsch said. Many companies are “going into their factories and looking at the nutrition they put in the garbage or the compost bin, and seeing if they can get it on shelves.”