Food waste is central to some of the key challenges facing the world today, such as hunger, climate change, and agricultural sustainability. Calls for ramping up innovations are gaining ground, as food loss and waste contributes to nearly 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) each year, according to the World Food Programme.

only 26% of food waste in the EU was properly collected in 2022, with a total bio-waste capture rate of 46%, highlighting significant challenges in the EU’s food waste collection systems. Nearly 1.05 billion metric tons of food were wasted globally in the same year, equating to 19% of food available to consumers, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

On “Stop Food Waste Day,” Food Ingredients First sits down with Adam Adamek, director of Innovation at EIT Food, to navigate the hurdles, innovations, and regulations surrounding food waste, which is beyond being just “a kitchen problem or a few leftovers tossed out.”

“Every year in Europe, we waste around 59 million metric tons of edible food. That’s not just tragic — it’s costing us €132 billion (US$150 billion) annually and fueling the climate crisis, contributing 8 to 10% of global GHG emissions.”

However, he flags that the real issue lies in how deeply waste is baked into the system.

“Today, about 40% of food production and service companies still don’t properly track wher and how waste happens. Imagine trying to run a business wher 10-15% of your stock disappears, and you have no idea why. That’s the reality for a lot of players across the food chain.”

Adamek also believes “misaligned incentives,” are an issue. Processors spend money on better systems to reduce waste, but the benefits, such as longer shelf life or better logistics,  go to retailers. 

“Without smarter alignment and real accountability, progress will always be much slower than it should be. If we don’t fix these systemic gaps — the data gaps, the incentive gaps, and the outdated rules around expiry — we’ll keep losing good food, money, and precious natural resources.”

Overcoming barriers to innovation

Adamek shares that the real bottleneck is scaling food waste innovations.

“One major hurdle is money, and not just fundraising. Scaling a solution involving hardware, like an AI camera that monitors kitchen waste, is expensive. Start-ups have to prove that the technology delivers real, measurable savings, and they usually have to do it across multiple pilot sites before clients believe it’s worth adopting.”

“Regulation is another big one. If a start-up develops a freshness sensor or dynamic labeling tool, they’re suddenly navigating a maze of national food laws. Every country in Europe treats things like expiry dates and shelf life indicators a little differently. That slows down deployment and adds legal complexity.”

He suggests a “mindset shift” among manufacturers to overcome these challenges.

“First, manufacturers need to treat waste as a real financial cost, not just an operational nuisance. When food loss is properly priced, not just the value of the food itself, but the energy, labor, transport, and emissions embedded in it, investing in solutions starts to make simple business sense.”

He also tells us “collaboration beats going solo,” adding that EIT Food builds co-financed innovation portfolios, which lowers risk, speed up learning and allows start-ups to scale across the ecosystem.

Another strategy is “outcome-based pricing.” He cites environmental consultant Orbisk as an example, which charges customers based on the amount of waste their solution prevents.

From “waste to premium”

Adamek highlights that companies are tapping the emerging trend of seeing food waste not as a cost, but as an “opportunity.”

He mentions Austria-based Kern Tec that uses stone fruit pits from cherries, apricots, and peaches to turn them into a dairy-free milk called Necta. “Compared to almond milk production, they cut the raw material cost by up to 85%. That’s an incredible turnaround, from waste to a premium, scalable product.”

Meanwhile, Agrain in Denmark uses leftovers from beer production to develop high-protein, high-fiber flour for human consumption. “Every 10,000 metric tons of spent grain they upcycle unlocks around €1.8 million (US$2 million) in added revenue,” says Adamek.

Tapping AI and smart sensors

AI, smart sensors, and machine learning are now pushing shelf life innovations beyond lab tests, Adamek shares.

“With tools like computer vision, machine learning, and smart sensors, we can predict the real condition of every piece of food in real-time. That means retailers can adjust prices dynamically, suppliers can route products smarter, and consumers can make better decisions at the shelf.”

He points to OneThird, whose near-infrared scanners allow farmers and supermarkets to predict how long fruit will stay fresh, which led to Dutch supermarket Albert Heijn cutting berry spoilage by 25%.

Meanwhile, Wasteless’ AI engine automatically lowers prices as expiration approaches, instead of a fixed shelf price.

“Freshness isn’t static anymore. Thanks to AI, it’s dynamic, trackable, and monetizable,” he adds.

Stepping up regulations

In February, the EU Council and Parliament approved new legislation mandating a 30% per capita reduction in food waste by 2030, targeting over 59 million metric tons of food waste the region generates annually.

However, Adamek believes the EU needs to make the 2030 food waste reduction targets binding. 

“Cutting 10% at manufacturing and 30% at retail and household level isn’t optional if we’re serious about climate and sustainability goals.”

“Second, we desperately need one common language for expiry dates. Right now, ‘use-by’ and ‘best-before’ mean different things in different countries. Third, transparency matters. Mandatory public reporting of food waste figures will drive real accountability. If companies know their waste numbers will be published, they’ll invest faster in solutions.”

He also calls for a smarter, faster approval pathway for upcycled ingredients like grain flour or fruit pulp to prevent the need to wait years for regulatory approval.

The next big leap

Adamek expects the next big leap in food waste innovations to channel prediction and transformation.

“Imagine every supermarket knowing exactly which products on the shelf will stay fresh for how long, and adjusting logistics, pricing, and promotions accordingly. Then, think about crops engineered through gene-editing technologies like CRISPR, not to grow bigger but to stay fresher longer, without preservatives and extra packaging. It’s already happening.”

“Finally, the idea of distributed biorefineries — micro plants that sit next to farms or processing centers, turning pulp, peel, and waste into fertilizer, bioplastics, or clean energy — will flip waste from a liability to a local, circular resource,” he concludes.