Interested in learning more about how the food industry can preserve the longevity of the planet? Tune in to the latest episode of State of the Plate to hear our very own Dan Kurzrock talk more about the importance of the upcycled ingredients!
Upcycled Foods, Inc. started with the goal to reduce some of the food loss in the beer making process. For those who don’t know, beer has four main ingredients – water, malt, hops, and yeast. For every 6 pack of beer produced, about a pound of barley malt is used. This means that there are over 20 billion pounds of barley lost per year, a significant contributor to food loss. An important note here: food loss is distinct from food waste. Food waste is food that is expiring or does not make it to market. On the other hand, food loss occurs upstream, for example with the latent supply chain from brewers grain. Upcycling seeks to valorize some of these latent supply chains and minimize our waste of resources and money.
There are also third party certification schemes available like Upcycled Certified to verify authentic upcycled ingredients and to prevent greenwashing. The certifications signal to consumers which products on the shelf are more sustainable. Considering food loss and waste are one of the biggest contributors to the climate crisis, upcycled ingredients present a huge opportunity to reshape sustainability. Interested in learning more about this topic? Reach out to us here!
