With food waste becoming more and more of a global problem, students from the University of Pretoria have done something innovative and impactful with an up-cycled food experiment:
Pretoria, South Africa (30 November 2023) — Final year students from the University of Pretoria’s Department of Consumer and Food Sciences have done something equally innovative and impactful thanks to their up-cycled food experiment.
Part of a practical exam and exhibition that married research and a need to be part of the solution when it comes to food security, the up-cycled food experiment sought to answer a simple question: can food waste be rescued and recreated so that there’s more to go around for malnourished communities?
The big focus was on the quality of the food. Students meticulously turned research into practice by creating dishes that gave food waste a chance to become nutritious food products.
One hundred units of food products were created; many of them encompassing food for thought. One team of students created a product dubbed ‘Boost’, a dehydrated power that was made out of ‘imperfect’ fruit and veggies, containing all the nutrients that fresh produce would have.
But, the real lesson was on how the retail industry can use their waste for the better.
“We know that 20% of food is wasted in the retail industry in South Africa. Of this waste, 50% is lost in the primary production stage, and a further 25% in consumption and distribution. Retailers aim to provide consumers with the best quality product; consequently, lower grade products are not used effectively. However, we have the opportunity to influence the value chain and supply chain through upcycling, a process of rescuing food,” said Thando Dlamini, a Food Retail Management student.
NGO SA Harvest, which was approached with the idea of using or managing food waste products to serve these people, commended the innovation. CEO Alan Browde noted that while not all food that goes to waste can be rescued, what can be salvaged could make a positive difference if the government comes to the party.
“About 10 million tons of food goes to waste every year in South Africa…Not all food that goes to waste can be rescued, yet if we had decent policies and government intervention, we could feed people just from the waste that can be rescued, let alone from the surplus food that we are exporting. These are things we have to do urgently.”—Alan Browde
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