Abstract
Investing in food waste reduction initiatives and finding innovations that unlock the potential of food waste makes great sense from an economic, social, and environmental perspective. One food waste prevention action that is gaining considerable momentum in the food production and manufacturing sectors is upcycling food. Upcycled foods are made from ingredients that would otherwise have ended up in a food waste destination. They are value-add products. This chapter introduces the latest upcycling marketplace trends and companies in the market selling upcycled products before taking a further look at upcycling in a country case study context: New Zealand. Given, ultimately, the success or failure of this sector will depend on consumer acceptability of these new products, results from a consumer study consisting of four focus groups (total n=29) and a nationally representative survey of 1000 consumers were carried out to assess consumers’ perceptions of foods derived from supermarket surplus bread. The results of this study indicate that there appears to be sufficient demand in New Zealand to consider upcycling as an idea with exciting market potential.
Miranda and Phil are Steering Committee Leads of the University of Otago Food Waste Innovation Research Theme, which measures food waste, develops reduction strategies, applies innovative technology, and works to modify producer and consumer behavior. As New Zealand's leading provider of food waste-related research, this group of interdisciplinary researchers harnesses the best scientific expertise at the University and nationwide to provide effective solutions to food waste problems.
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Mirosa, M., Bremer, P. (2023). Understanding New Foods: Upcycling. In: Serventi, L. (eds) Sustainable Food Innovation . Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-12358-0_11
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