From Waste to Resource: The Transformative Potential of Organic Extracts

  • Aug 22, 2024

As of April 2024, the United States throws out more food than any other country. That equates to an estimated nearly 60 million tons – or almost 40% of our food supply – annually. To put that in perspective, it’s around 325 pounds (147 kilograms) of waste per American1. For most of us, that’s almost twice our weight in waste every year.
 
With increased sustainability and reduced waste integral to the United Nations’ global “sustainable consumption and production” goal, food waste reduction, recycling, and upcycling are gaining momentum. Currently, much of the world’s food waste goes to landfills. According to Enterra Solutions, solid food waste comprises the largest share of US landfill space, around 22%, representing nearly US$218 billion or 130 billion meals2.
 
As a result, manufacturers and innovators are leveraging and continuously uncovering the considerable potential of food waste as a valuable resource. Recognized and emerging applications are numerous, including established and novel concepts such as:

  • Composting: Composted organic food waste can generate nutrient-rich soil and additives for gardening, landscaping, and agriculture. This long-standing practice can help reduce waste going to landfills while promoting healthier cultivation and more sustainable food waste management protocols.
  • Animal feed: Fruit and vegetable scraps can be repurposed as animal feed, helping to reduce the burden on land for feed crops and deforestation in vital global green zones. Recycling waste as fodder also contributes to the growth of essential circular economies in agriculture.
  • Energy production: Anaerobic digestion and technological advances mean that food waste can be converted into biogas to generate renewable heat and electricity while offsetting greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, converting waste directly to energy can reduce waste volumes by up to 90%.
    Successful examples of waste-to-energy initiatives include the Copenhagen, Dubai, and Singapore waste-to-energy plants, Swedish biogas buses, China’s biogas digesters, and Nepal’s biogas power plants3.
  • Biodegradable packaging: Food waste can produce biodegradable packaging materials, including cellulose-based packaging, such as Coca-Cola’s bottles, NatrueWorks’ packaging, and BioFibre’s textiles.
  • Food recovery and redistribution: Food surplus from the retail and hospitality industries can be recovered and shared with shelters, food banks, and other charities to accommodate those in need. Rescuing and redirecting food helps combat food waste and food insecurity.
  • Value-added products: Food waste can creatively be transformed into nutritious and tasty beverages and dishes such as juices, smoothies, snacks, soups, and sauces. This upcycling reduces food waste and helps develop new or additional food industry revenue streams.
  • Nutrient recovery: Beyond redistributing surplus, current technology allows laboratories to extract nutrients from food waste, such as nitrogen and phosphorous. These elements can then become fertilizers. This bioactive recovery helps reduce waste and reliance on harmful and less sustainable synthetic alternatives.

The Transformative Potential of Bioactive Compounds From Food Waste
Food waste, especially agro-food waste, represents a viable source of valuable active extracts and compounds across various industries and applications. While most of this environmentally and economically beneficial excess is composted or used for biogas, potential extends far beyond these uses.
 
For example, recyclers can treat vegetables, fruit, cooking oil, starch, dairy, meat, fish and shellfish and convert food processing waste into countless beneficial compounds. These include pectin, cellulose, hemicellulose, sugar, proteins, glycerol, glucose, lactic acid, lactose, chitosan, chitin, biohydrogen, biogas, and ethanol. Additionally, extracts from agro-food waste also yield minerals, vitamins, carotenoids, dietary fiber, glucosinolates, antioxidants, polysaccharides, and more.
 
It can also be a source of natural flavoring from seeds, shells, molasses, and other materials. These yield bioactive flavanols like hydroxycinnamic and hydroxybenzoic acids, proanthocyanidins, anthocyanins, flavones, isoflavones, flavanones, lignans, and stilbenes. Among other applications, these compounds are used in the health and wellness industry and in improved food packaging and bioplastics.
 
Explore Premium-Quality, 100% Natural Bioactive Extracts From Advanced Biotech
Existing and innovative reuse and extraction solutions provide numerous options for directing food waste away from landfills. They also help fulfill food waste’s true nature as a misplaced resource, contributing to a more sustainable food system. Browse Advanced Biotech’s pure and EU-certified flavor and odor ingredients collection – including organic and plant-based compounds – and contact us today.

1,2 https://enterrasolutions.com/stop-food-waste-day-2024/
3 https://shorturl.at/egmU8