Food waste to boost food production

Food waste is a major problem in itself, with Norwegians throwing away around 400,000 tonnes of food each year. Food waste in landfill also generates significant methane emissions and pollutes both air and water.

‘Our goal and business model have been to tackle organic waste by finding effective ways to make use of it as a resource,’ says Ingmar Høgøy, CEO and Chair of Greentech Innovators.

According to Greentech Innovators, the solution is to ferment food waste using lactic acid bacteria. This process will produce single-cell proteins for use as a feed additive for fish and pets, as well as nutrient salts to fertilise microalgae production. The microalgae will absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and can also be used as fish feed. The process will also produce lactic acid, which can be used to make environmentally friendly bioplastics.

According to Ole-Andreas Smette, a funding advisor at Innovation Norway Vestland, the fermentation process will produce fewer harmful emissions than alternative technologies and will not emit greenhouse gases such as methane or CO2.

‘This is an example of the circular economy in practice, where food waste from businesses and households can be used as a feed supplement for fish, which can then be eaten by people. The residual waste from production can be used as an organic fertiliser, returning all the nutrients from the food waste to the food chain,’ Smette explains.

Greentech Innovators received NOK 2.8 million in funding from our Environmental Technology Scheme last year. The funding will be used to build a pilot facility at Flesland in Bergen, in partnership with waste management company BIR, as well as an in-house laboratory.

In addition, the technology has previously received both grants and business development advisory from us through the company's subsidiaries.

‘Support from Innovation Norway has been absolutely crucial. We are building an industry, and that requires investment, so we could not have done it without this support,’ says Høgøy.

Initially, the pilot plant will process around 1,000 tonnes of waste from local restaurants and catering businesses. It will later be expanded to also accept household waste, amounting to between 15,000 and 20,000 tonnes.

According to Smette, the company expects to begin operating its first commercial facility in 2022.

‘If successful, the project will be able to process large quantities of organic waste. Other companies in Norway and abroad are also working on this, but Greentech has been developing the technology for many years, has extensive expertise and has made significant progress in its biological and technological development,’ he says.

Høgøy says the plan is to expand gradually and ultimately pursue international growth. He hopes to continue the customer journey with us throughout, and the company has applied for funding from the Green Platform, a joint initiative by Innovation Norway, the Research Council of Norway, Enova and Siva.