Innovations in Upcycling

The Sustainable Foods Summit, held in San Francicso in January, focused on sustainability schemes, regenerative agriculture, and ecological and packaging impacts:

• What is the future of third party sustainability schemes?
• What can be done to raise adoption rates of regenerative agriculture?
• How are operators measuring and reducing their ecological impacts?
• How are new technologies creating sustainable ingredients?
• What green packaging innovations are occurring?  

Leading sustainable expert Dan Kurzrock is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Upcycled Foods Inc., an innovation platform of upcycled food for commercial food makers. The company specializes in using patented technology to create novel ingredients from previously overlooked and undervalued supply chains. As a thought leader on the upcycling food movement, Kurzrock is often a featured speaker at industry conferences, and he gave us an update at the show.

WholeFoods Magazine (WF): What role does Upcycled Foods play in the B2B food category? 

Kurzrock: Upcycled Foods, Inc. (UP, Inc.) powers the B2B upcycled food economy with a growing portfolio of ingredient products, innovation expertise, and cutting-edge technology. Our ingredient products include the pioneering ReGrained SuperGrain+, coffee leaf tea, cacao syrup, wine raisins, and more. Through our Upcycled Foods Lab, we partner with industry companies of all sizes to close the loop on undervalued supply chains, creating products with exceptional taste, nutrition, and functionality that meet market and consumer demand. Our team of interdisciplinary experts to help customers to launch new products, future-proof supply chains, and increase profits by transforming waste streams. 

WF: You launched the company based on your love of beer. How did that play into starting the company? 

Kurzrock: When I began to brew beer at the University of California Los Angeles in 2009 as an undergrad, my eyes were opened to how much food I was leaving behind with each batch. It takes an average of about one pound of grain to make a six-pack of beer and the process only takes the sugars from the grain, leaving a lot behind. After discovering how tasty and nutritious the post-brewed grains were, I began to incorporate them into loaves of bread, and then sell them to cover my homebrewing expenses. As a sustainability nerd, I had heard the term upcycling used to describe projects that used the waste materials from one industry to create a new use for another industry. That’s when I saw the potential for upcycled food and my own brewer’s spent grain (BSG) was where it started. ReGrained (our original company and product name) was born. 

WF: What food products benefit best from upcycled food ingredients? 

Kurzrock: The beauty of upcycled ingredients is that they’re incredibly versatile and can add value across a wide range of product categories in both retail and foodservice environments. We like to think of them as a foundational enabler of food and beverage innovations that are at the intersection of flavor, health, nutrition and sustainability. Historically, we’ve seen great success in products like baked goods, snacks and beverages and applications where consumers care about both functionality and sustainability. Upcycled ingredients like ReGrained SuperGrain+ not only enhance the nutritional profile with added fiber and protein but also tell a compelling story of reducing waste. Ultimately, upcycled ingredients fit best in hero products where brands are looking to differentiate through innovation and sustainability, aligning with today’s consumer demands for transparency, nutrition, and environmental responsibility. 

WF: How large is the upcycled food products industry? 

Kurzrock: The global upcycled food products market is expanding at 6.2% CAGR, projected to reach $97 billion by 2031 (Source: Allied Market Research). The global food ingredients market is expanding at 5.8% CAGR, projected to reach $475.4 billion by 2031 (Source: Allied Market Research). Furthermore, 76% of the world’s top 250 food and beverage companies have publicly committed to food waste reduction targets. (Source: Champions 12.3, On Food Loss and Wast 2023 Progress Report).