Over one-third of the food in the United States is lost or wasted every year, squandering natural resources, contributing to food insecurity, and perpetuating the climate crisis.1 Of the 73 to 152 million metric tons of measured food waste lost each year, the most wasted foods are fruits and vegetables, followed by dairy and eggs. Over half of all waste occurs at households and restaurants, while the food distribution and processing (i.e., manufacturers) sector generates 34 million metric tons of the total amount stated above.2 Put in terms of gross tonnage, it’s the equivalent of every U.S. citizen wasting over 1,000 pounds of food each year.

As the adage goes, you can’t manage what you don’t measure, and there have been over a dozen studies attempting to quantify the impact on natural resources and required inputs to produce food that is never consumed. In November 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published an exhaustive 107-page report titled, “From Farm to Kitchen: The Environmental Impacts of U.S. Food Waste.” The study conducted a systemic review of relevant peer-reviewed reports and other publicly available information pertinent to food lost and waste from 2010 through 2020, with priority given to publications from 2014 or later. Even to the initiated, the findings are staggering. Approximately 16% of agricultural land, a footprint the size of California and New York combined, is dedicated to producing crops that are never eaten each year. Similarly, we’re wasting 20% of our food system’s (largely fossil-fuel reliant) energy consumption, which is enough to power 50 million homes.2 Our current food system is linear and extractive – we take, we make, and we waste. Breaking our destructive cycle of waste by redesigning for circularity is arguably the lowest hanging-fruit dangling within humanity’s reach. In contrast to linear thinking, a circular economy ends waste from happening in the first place.

Breaking the cycle and reframing the system requires intention and commitment by all stakeholders—from farmers and food manufacturers to retailers and consumers. The good news? Doing so is in everyone’s best interest.
As The Ellen MacArthur Foundation in its groundbreaking report, “The Big Food Redesign: Regenerating Nature with the Circular Economy” so aptly asserts, the circular design of food makes it possible to transform our food system into one that is good for people, planet, and the prosperity of all stakeholders. The report brilliantly creates a framework that combines food design with the principles of the circular economy. These three principles include:

• Eliminate waste and pollution
• Circulate products and materials at their highest value (i.e., upcycled ingredients)
• Regenerate nature (e.g., regenerative agriculture, agroecology, agroforestry)

But what exactly does “food design” mean? The discipline entails developing (or reformulating) products to have nature-positive outcomes, with profitability typically as a co-benefit. With food design, we seize the opportunity to collectively look at ingredient ecosystems to understand a product’s impact on the environment, and then adjust our inputs to yield more optimal outputs. Increasing ingredient diversity is a central tactic to circular food design. Today, just four crops provide 60% (!) of the world’s calories, while many alternative ingredients that pack a lighter environmental load (and potentially greater benefits) are rarely used. For instance, consider the development of mainstream food products designed to replace a percentage of conventional wheat with regeneratively farmed perennial grains like Kernza and/or upcycled brewers’ grains. Perennial grains support regenerative agriculture by building healthy soils, improving wildlife habitats, and protecting water resources. Upcycled brewers’ grains yields an entirely second product, where there was previously just one.

When it comes to sourcing ingredients, food processors that embrace circular design provide significantly greater benefits than only improving conventional sourcing practices. These benefits positively affect people and planet, by improving biodiversity and lowering GHG emissions, while simultaneously driving greater economic return.

Upcycled ingredients are central to the circular design framework to ensure food reaches its highest use and maximizes the return on the resources that have already been exhausted. According to the Upcycled Food Association (UFA), “Upcycled foods use ingredients that otherwise would not have gone to human consumption, are procured and produced using verifiable supply chains, and have a positive impact on the environment.” Upcycling transforms cost and risk into upside and opportunity. From fruit pulp/pits and baby carrot shavings to whey from yogurt and grain from breweries, the food supply chain is leaving vastly under-appreciated amount of edible and nutritious food sources off the table.

Unsurprisingly, upcycling is recognized as a top food waste solution for food producers in terms of economic and environmental impact. According to ReFED’s aggregated analysis, food waste diverted with upcycling eliminates 2.6 metric tons of CO2e and saves 238,000 gallons of water saved per ton.

To bolster credibility for upcycled foods, the UFA introduced the Certified Upcycled® standards in 2021. The standard was developed with a cross-sectoral committee of expert stakeholders and is administered in cooperation with Where Food Comes From, Inc., the leading resource for independent, third-party verification of food production practices in North America. The certification is an important tool to enable the market to delineate between the vanguards of authentic impact and the “vultures.” The purpose of the standard is to deliver transparency and earn trust with consumers and the trade, protecting the veracity of environment, societal and governance (ESG) product claims. Trust is priceless, but the return is still measurable: 54% of consumers surveyed in a leading study indicated that the UFA certification mark increased their purchase intent.4 The certification does not currently provide environmental net-impact reporting but takes an important step by ensuring certified products and ingredients are a) genuinely sourced from food loss destinations, b) accounting for operational carbon emission sources, and c) preventing food waste internally.

Upcycling is a promising food waste solution. Hundreds of companies are developing brands, products, and supply chains. Respected organizations, media, and investor community echo support. Yet, consumer demand for these products is ultimately most crucial to the success of upcycled food supplies and reducing food waste overall.

At a macro level, 42% of consumers report an increased awareness of the environmental impact their food choices represent.5 Further, a leading study found that 95% of consumers surveyed indicated a specific desire to do their part to reduce food waste.3 Another study found that consumer consciousness of the positive impact food waste mitigation has on the climate crisis has grown 71% since 2019.6 Together, these data points demonstrate an active interest by consumers to make food choices that reduce their food waste and help improve the planet’s health. In this context, food choices may include buying less food to avoid spoilage, selecting brands that support regenerative farming practices, choosing items made with certified upcycled ingredients, or all the above.

The COP26 Summit, just the latest in an ongoing series of global calls to action, sent a clear message that the time for urgent action is now. The food system is a significant contributor to climate change, and our business leaders play a critical role to develop solutions and lead the way for all stakeholders. The circular design of food is a compelling framework for food companies to implement because it marries nature-positive solutions with economic upside. Folks, it is time for bold action to put theory in practice. The analysis is done, now it is up to us to choose agency over paralysis.

SOURCES

1. FAO (2019). The state of food and agriculture: Moving forward on food loss and waste reduction. Rome, Italy: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. http://www.fao.org/3/ca6030en/ca6030en.pdf
2. Jaglo, K.; Kenny, S.; and Stephenson, J. (2021). From Farm to Kitchen: The Environmental Impact of U.S. Food Waste (Part 1). (Report No. EPA 600-R21 171). Washington, D.C.; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-11/from-farm-to-kitchen-the-environmental-impacts-of-u.s.-food-waste_508-tagged.pdf
3. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, ““The Big Food Redesign: Regenerating Nature with the Circular Economy,” 2021
4. Mattson (2021). Upcycling: The Opportunity. Foster City, CA: Mattson. Proprietary research from ReGrained.
5. IFIC (2021). 2021 Food and Health Survey. Washington, D.C.: International Food Information Council. https://foodinsight.org/2021-food-health-survey/
6. FMI (2019). Products from Food Waste Market – Key Research Findings. Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Future Market Insights. https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/products-from-food-waste-market

Learning Objectives

1. Explain how upcycled food fits into a circular economy and its real-life and potential environmental impacts
2. Showcase product launch success stories from working with brand partners
3. Share marketing best practices for talking about upcycled foods with stakeholders

Presenter
Dan Kurzrock, Regrained

Panel
Moderator: Joanie Spencer, Commercial Baking – Avant Media
Panelists: Karen Bornarth, The Bread Bakers Guild of America; Joe Kenner, Greyston Bakery: Ted Castle, Rhino Foods

Panel Information
Thursday, March 2, 2023
9:35am – 10:35am

Session Information
General Session
Thursday, March 2, 2023
9:15am – 10:45am

Session Schedule
9:25am: Business Meeting
9:35am: DEI Workforce Panel Discussion
10:35am: Bread Talk

The ATBI Early Bird Breakfast will feature speaker Dick Beardsley who is one of the world’s most extraordinary, well respected, and compelling motivational / inspirational keynote speakers.  Dick’s inspirational international best selling autobiography Staying the Course, A Runners Toughest Race and the subject of the best selling book Duel in the Sun:  The Story of Alberto Salazar, Dick Beardsley, and America’s Greatest Marathon.  
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Dick has been the  keynote speaker at Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations, conferences, conventions, corporate events, fundraisers, galas, sporting events, prisons, schools and drug treatment centers, to name a few.  Anywhere motivation, inspiration and hope is needed.  Dick has spoken to countless number of groups all over the world, ranging in size from 5 people to 15,000 people.

He has a gift of making people laugh, cry and most importantly, think and appreciate life to the fullest, despite any ups and downs that may come along. Your clients will be walked through his exciting highs and his dark valley of despair and through the anguish to that great light of hope and redemption.  Dick’s talks are directly from his heart and are highly inspirational. 

One of Dick’s greatest strengths is his ability to look on the positive side of life.  It has allowed him to overcome multitudes of personal tragedy and helped him become the person he is today.  Dick is a great source of inspiration to all of those who hear him speak.  

With perseverance and courage, your clients will know they can take the next step when they don’t think that they can or have it in them.  They will leave with the ability to believe in themselves and embrace life’s challenges, not matter how daunting.  They will leave inspired and full of hope.  He will bring your listeners to laughter, tears, the pinnacle, the bottom, and back up again.   Dick can communicate to your audience on what it takes to become world class.

For a brief moment in the early ’80s Dick Beardsley became the most famous runner / athlete in the world – by losing a race. In the 1982 Boston Marathon, Beardsley, foiled by a motorcycle that cut him off near the end, finished two seconds behind Alberto Salazar in a contest often called one of the most memorable in marathon history. It was the closest finish ever at the world’s premier marathon, and both runners broke the course and the American records.

Presentation
ATBI Early Bird Breakfast
Thursday, March 2, 2023
7:30am – 9:00am

Dan is the Founder and CEO of Upcycled Foods Inc., the leading innovation platform for upcycled food. The company specializes in using patented technology to create novel ingredients from previously overlooked and undervalued supply chains. In partnership with food makers, we develop new food products and menu items featuring certified upcycled ingredients. Dan was a cofounding officer of the Upcycled Food Association and Upcycled Food Foundation, and can often be seen pioneering the movement on the frontlines. He’s a thought leader on the upcycling food movement, often a featured speaker at industry conferences and sought after by the media. He earned his bachelors from UCLA, where underage home brewing started it all, as well as an MBA in sustainable business from Presidio Graduate School.

Presentation Information
How the Circular Economy Integrates Upcycled Food and Regenerative Agricultural Systems
Thursday, March 2, 2023
11:00am – 11:35am

MBA from EGADE and Industrial Engineer specialized in finance. Responsible for all the renewable energy solutions worldwide in Grupo Bimbo, in charge of making sure the company complies with all regulations in energy matters, and of mixing strategies to optimize the use of energy and minimize costs. Eleven years in Grupo Bimbo, and 9 years of experience in Energy, managing the Wind Farm Piedra Larga since 2012, responsible of the Virtual PPA signed by Grupo Bimbo in the United States, the PPAs signed in Chile, Argentina, and Colombia among others, which made the company 85% Renewable by 2021. In 2018 Grupo Bimbo inaugurated Bimbo Solar, which led by her, involved 30MW of solar rooftops in 96 sites, including the largest rooftop in Mexico with 2.2MW, the largest rooftop in Chile with 2.3MW and the largest one in Peru with 1.1MW. She is leading the way for Grupo Bimbo to become 100% Renewable electricity by 2025.

In 2020 she became Global Head of Net Zero Carbon, with the challenge to take Grupo Bimbo to Net Zero Carbon emissions by 2050.

Recognized 3 years in a row as one of the 30 women committed with the environment in Mexico. Panelist and international speaker for Renewable Energy and Net Zero Carbon.

Presentation Information
Resilience to Reach Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050: A Process Every Bakery Must Adopt to Thrive
Thursday, March 2, 2023
2:10pm – 2:25pm

Session Information
Closing General Session
Thursday, March 2, 2023
2:00pm – 3:30pm