An important part of our purpose, Feeding the Future, is rethinking what we waste. By helping food producers transform byproducts into valuable animal feed, Nutreco is advancing circular agriculture and enabling more sustainable animal protein production, contributing to the global effort to feed a growing population.
Helping feed the future through circular solutions
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, one-third of all food produced (about 1.3 billion tons) is lost along the food chain. Food production – such as beer brewing and cheese production – also produces high-moisture byproducts that are rich in nutrients. These are no longer fit for human consumption but, in a truly circular food system, we would harness these nutrients for animal feed rather than discarding them.
However, managing these byproducts is a major challenge. Without treatment, they spoil quickly. For example, spent brewer’s yeast loses up to 20% of its economic value after seven days, due to microbial growth. Nutreco is working to change this.
The power of Revalet
Trouw Nutrition, Nutreco's livestock and pets business line, developed the Revalet range of products, which can be added to byproducts to ensure feed safety, maintaining nutritional value, and extending their shelf life longer for further use. Revalet is based on synergistic blends of organic acids and surfactants to reduce moulds, yeasts and Enterobacteria. Its effect lasts much longer and preserves more nutrients than traditional heating or single-acid treatments, making more byproducts viable for feed.
Keeping byproducts out of landfills
More companies are now seeking alternatives to landfill and biogas disposal for their byproducts. We’re partnering with food and beverage companies to help divert more byproducts from the waste stream and convert them into safe and nutritious protein sources for use in livestock feeds. We are currently treating 400,000 metric tonnes of byproducts with Revalet – turning materials that are not edible for humans into nutritious protein to help feed the growing global population.
Partnering for circular progress
Nutreco collaborated with Wageningen University & Research on a study exploring the environmental impact of switching from traditional dry feeds to liquid feeds based on food industry byproducts in swine production. The study examined how these circular feed solutions affect a farm’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, resource use and overall sustainability.
In addition, we engage with suppliers of circular feed ingredients to gather more accurate environmental footprint data and have included specific metrics in feed formulation practices to monitor the circularity of feed.
Working together for impact
When food and feed companies collaborate in noncompetitive areas, we can make much more progress than going it alone. Nutreco is committed to partnering across the entire supply chain to embed sustainable and future-proof solutions into our products – helping build a smarter, more resilient food system and making progress towards our purpose of Feeding the Future. If you would like to hear more about how Nutreco can help you upcycle byproducts, please reach out to us: Food by-products in a circular economy | Selko
Sustainable Development Goals
