Food loss and waste is often discussed as a problem. But what if we also looked at food loss and waste as an opportunity?

Across the food value chain, businesses are finding innovative ways to recover value from resources that would otherwise be discarded. Food upcycling, animal feed, composting, bio-based products and waste-to-value solutions are creating new possibilities for how we use resources and how businesses participate in a more circular economy.

The opportunity is not simply to produce less waste. It is to ask what can be done with what would otherwise be wasted.

Turning waste into value

A circular economy challenges the idea that a resource has reached the end of its useful life simply because it is no longer needed for its original purpose.

Food by-products can become inputs for other products. Organic material can be processed into compost. Resources that would otherwise be discarded can be redirected towards animal feed, bio-based applications or other waste-to-value solutions.

These approaches demonstrate that addressing food loss and waste can also create space for innovation, entrepreneurship and new business models.

For businesses operating in these sectors, the challenge is not only developing a solution. It is also building a sustainable enterprise around that solution.

The businesses behind the solutions

From small enterprises developing food-upcycling products to businesses processing organic waste, producing animal feed or developing bio-based alternatives, entrepreneurs are already contributing to the circular economy.

Their work can sit across different parts of the value chain:

  • Food upcycling - finding new uses and markets for food that might otherwise be discarded.

  • Animal feed - redirecting suitable food by-products and resources into feed solutions.

  • Composting - transforming organic waste into a resource that can support soil and agricultural systems.

  • Bio-based products - using biological materials to develop alternative products and applications.

  • Waste-to-value - creating products, services or commercial opportunities from materials that would otherwise be treated as waste.

Together, these activities show that food loss and waste is not only an environmental issue. It can also be a space for enterprise development and economic participation.

Innovation needs access to markets

A business can have an innovative solution, but innovation alone does not guarantee sustainable growth.

Businesses need customers. They need access to markets and procurement opportunities. They need the skills, systems, infrastructure and relationships required to deliver consistently and meet commercial requirements.

This is particularly important when considering the development of a more inclusive circular economy.

If new markets are emerging around sustainability and resource recovery, local enterprises need pathways to participate in those markets.

This is where the South African Supplier Diversity Council becomes part of the conversation.

Creating opportunities for Black-owned and women-owned businesses to participate in emerging green and circular value chains can connect sustainability with enterprise development, market access and broader economic participation.

Looking beyond waste

The conversation around food loss and waste is therefore bigger than simply asking how much waste can be prevented.

It is also about identifying where innovation can happen, where businesses can participate and where new value can be created.

For SASDC, this connects with the thinking behind Project EMBRACE and its focus on creating pathways through skills development, entrepreneurship, enterprise development, market access and employment.

A more inclusive green economy requires more than good ideas. It requires an ecosystem that allows businesses with good ideas to develop, participate and access opportunities.

Are you building a solution?

As we mark the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, SASDC is looking to connect with businesses working to turn food loss and waste into value.

If your business operates in food upcycling, animal feed, composting, bio-based products, waste-to-value solutions or another innovative area focused on recovering value from food loss and waste, we want to hear from you.

Tell us about your business, the solution you are developing and how you are contributing to a more circular economy.

Connect with SASDC.

From food loss to opportunity. From waste to value. From innovation to economic participation.

 

 

Published: 29 September 2026