Upcycling

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Creating circular raw materials by upcycling tires
CategoriesSustainable News

Creating circular raw materials by upcycling tires

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: According to a 2021 study, about 1.5 billion tyres end up as waste every year. But Polish company Contec has a better idea than letting tyres go to landfill, however, and is treating used tyres as a source of valuable raw materials.

Contec uses pyrolysis to break down the vulcanised rubber in the tyres. Pyrolysis is a thermochemical process in which the shredded tyres are heated to temperatures between 400-700 degrees Celsius in an oxygen-free atmosphere. This breaks down large, vulcanised rubber molecules into smaller compounds to produce soot, gas, oil, and other chemicals.

By adapting this process, Contec is able to recover rubber and steel for reuse in new tyres, oil for use in the chemical and refining industry, and carbon black, which is used as a pigment and a filler to the mechanical strength of rubber compounds used in tyre manufacture.

Although still in the early stages, Contec has developed its process to a commercial capacity. The company recently secured zł 70 million (around €15.6 million) in funding from investors HiTech ASI, Pruszyński Sp. z o.o. and Mariusz Machciński. The funding will be used to the processing capacity of their plant from 10,000 to 33,000 tonnes of used tyres a year.

Contec is not alone in the search for a more sustainable way to manufacture and recycle tyres. In the archive, Springwise has also spotted innovations such as a bio-based carbon black and tyres made from recycled plastic.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

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An inclusive approach to upcycling low-value plastics into new products
CategoriesSustainable News

An inclusive approach to upcycling low-value plastics into new products

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Every year, between 8 to 10 million metric tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans. Countries in Southeast Asia are among the major offenders – many lack the infrastructure to collect and process plastic waste. Vietnam, which only recycles around a third of its plastic waste, is one of these. But a startup called ReForm Plastic is aiming to change this, as well as improve the lives of Vietnamese waste pickers – who are largely women. 

ReForm focuses on repurposing different types of waste plastic into moulded plastic products such as: construction tiles, tables, chairs, waste bins, playground equipment, and holds for rock-climbing walls. However, the startup is also repurposing the waste system by transforming existing collection centres into small production facilities. 

The small recycling centres are equipped with efficient low-cost machinery, collection and processing equipment. Each centre is partially locally owned and managed, but generates products that are centrally purchased and distributed by ReForm.  

ReForm already has four factories in operation in Vietnam – and is building six more in partnership with organisations in Thailand, Bangladesh, Laos, Mozambique, and the Philippines. In addition to providing work for thousands of workers, the circular system also formalises a large proportion of the informal waste sector. 

One way that innovators are tackling plastic waste is by collecting it and turning it into new products – reducing waste as well as the use of fossil fuels to make virgin plastics. Springwise has spotted a startup making backpacks from recycled plastic and a refillable and decomposable replacement for plastic pill bottles.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

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Upcycling food waste into dried fruit snacks
CategoriesSustainable News

Upcycling food waste into dried fruit snacks

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Faced with the knowledge that California throws away more peaches than the entire state of Georgia produces in a year, The Ugly Company founder Ben Moore wanted to help put a stop to such waste. Rather than discarding fruits that are too misshapen to be sold to supermarkets, The Ugly Company upcycles them into healthy dried fruit snacks.  

Run by a team with close ties to the farming industry, the startup sources most of its product locally from the San Joaquin Valley in California. Cherries, peaches, apricots, kiwis, and nectarines are dried and packaged for sale in individual snack packs. It takes eight pounds of fresh fruit to create one pound of dried fruit, so each pack of Ugly fruit represents two and a half pounds of fruit rescued from waste.  

As well as preventing food waste, the company adds value to the local farming economy. Farmers no longer have to pay for the collection and dumping of their unused fruit. Instead, The Ugly Company pays growers for crops that are good to eat but deemed ‘too ugly’ for general wholesale, whether that be because they are too small, or have an odd colour or shape. 

Buyers can find the fruit in several grocery chains, including Krogers’s, Hy-Vee, and Whole Foods, as well as online and via subscription boxes. Thanks to a recent Series A funding round that raised $9 million (about €8.4 million), the company plans to expand its processing capacity and keep up with growing national demand.  

Other ways in which Springwise has spotted innovations reducing food waste include turning broccoli stems into alternative proteins, and using AI-powered scanners to track the freshness of produce.

Written By: Keely Khoury

Reference

Upcycling microfibres from laundry – Springwise
CategoriesSustainable News

Upcycling microfibres from laundry – Springwise

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Microfibres, or microplastics, have been receiving a lot of bad press lately. And for good reason. These tiny threads break off from textiles in the normal course of washing, drying, and wear and tear, and end up everywhere. Now, startup Xeros Technology is hoping to prevent this situation from getting worse by devising ways to upcycle captured fibres.

Xeros already manufactures a filter that captures 99 per cent of microplastics shed during washing and can be used with any washing machine. Now, the company has teamed up with the University of Surrey to develop a method for upcycling the micro and nanofibres that are shed during the washing of textiles. These fibres are made from plastics, and the researchers have devised a way to release the carbon contained in the fibres, which can then be reused.

The method takes microfibre waste collected from commercially available filters and produces clean hydrogen and solid carbon nanomaterials as by-products. These can then be used in various essential products including batteries, solar cells, and medical devices. The partnership with Xeros will allow the researchers to develop ways to scale up their process and develop a commercial-scale solution.

Although the exact environmental and health effects of microplastics are unclear, there is a growing consensus that we need to get on top of this problem. Springwise has spotted a growing number of innovations aimed at tackling this issue, including processes that use magnets, silk capsules, and apples to remove microplastics from water.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference

Upcycling broccoli waste into sustainable protein
CategoriesSustainable News

Upcycling broccoli waste into sustainable protein

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Broccoli is a healthy food containing fibre, vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, and potassium. It also boasts more protein than most other vegetables, with virtually no fat. However, around 70 per cent of the entire broccoli harvest is left in the field. This is because only the small, centre portion of each plant – the florets – is harvested for food, leaving most of the stems and leaves to rot, even though they are perfectly edible.

Startup Upp is working to change this, with a two-pronged approach. The company is developing an automated harvester that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision to harvest the centre portion and stems separately. The harvester will then deliver the fresh broccoli for sale and the stems and leaves for upcycling into new products.

These upcycled stems and leaves will be used to produce protein by-products, as the company is looking to provide an alternative plant-based protein to pea and soya. Upp argues that using broccoli as a protein source is less carbon-intensive than soy or peas because the broccoli is already being grown for other uses.

David Whitewood, CEO of Upp says: “Upp is all about making the most of the crops that we already grow (…) In a future market of bioreactor and lab-grown alt-proteins, plant-based foods with good provenance will attract a premium like organic grass-fed beef does today.”

Upp has recently secured £500,000 (around €560,000) in pre-seed funding, in a round led by Elbow Beach Capital, to develop and commercialise its technology.

Food waste is a massive issue. Luckily, there is no shortage of innovations seeking to tackle it. Some that Springwise has spotted recently include a handheld system that uses AI to check freshness levels of fruit, and a closed-loop system that converts food waste into nutrients for use in hydroponics.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference

Upcycling food by-products into plant-based fish
CategoriesSustainable News

Upcycling food by-products into plant-based fish

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: Aggressive and unsustainable farming methods, greenhouse gas emissions, and loss of biodiversity. These are some of the negative impacts associated with the seafood industry. In response, the global plant-based fish market is projected to reach a valuation of $1.3 billion (around €1.2 billion) by 2031. 

Against this backdrop, UK-based food-tech company Better Nature has secured a £350,000 (around €410,000) grant to develop plant-based fish made from food by-products. The company aims for the new range of sustainable seafood products to be nutritious, delicious, and environmentally friendly.

The grant, which comes from the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK, will enable Better Nature to build on the company’s proprietary fermentation methods, which are inspired by tempeh – a protein-rich plant-based food originating in Indonesia. This traditional Indonesian delicacy is made by fermenting soybeans.

The new fish alternative will be low in fat and cholesterol, but high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids. Better Nature’s products are not only good for health – they also have a positive impact on the environment. Traditional seafood farming is often damaging to ecosystems, but Better Nature’s products are produced in a way that minimises environmental impact. In addition, their products are completely free from antibiotics and other chemicals often used in conventional seafood farming.

The project aims to have upcycled vegan fish on the table by 2026.

Recent years have seen a revolution in plant-based food. Springwise has recently spotted a protein-rich food additive made from duckweed, animal-free proteins and preservatives, and alternative fats produced through fermentation.

Written By: Katrina Lane

23rd June 2022

Website: betternaturetempeh.co

Contact: betternaturetempeh.co/contact

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