A guide to upcycling R&D
Table of Contents
Upcycling is potentially transformative for the food system, allowing us to make the most of the foods we produce. Yet without a systematic approach to upcycling R&D that is grounded in culinary, scientific and cultural knowledge, we won’t be able to fully realise the potential of different food by-products, and might even end up making things that don’t make sense. For example, we’ve seen more than a few attempts to upcycle by-products that, however well-intentioned, don’t appear to have matched their desired outcome to the properties of the by-product, or vice versa.
So we thought we’d share this focussed guide of key questions we ask ourselves when exploring new R&D projects, which help us make the most of our by-products. If it can help any other upcyclers out there, we are glad.
i. Why are we making this?
What is our end goal? Are we starting with a specific by-product and trying to make a specific product, flavour, taste or texture? Or are we trying to make a specific product, flavour, taste or texture and aren’t sure which by-product to work with? Or do we have a specific by-product that we’re not quite sure what to do with? Or something else? The answer will influence everything else we do and help to narrow down which possibilities to pursue.
Or maybe we're just tinkering and exploring with no specific end goal in mind? That is also okay—in which case we can treat the remaining steps as flexible prompts rather than a strict sequence.
See also: ‘Tradeoffs in upcycling’
ii. What do we have?
If we aren’t starting with a specific by-product but do have an end goal in mind, we can skip this step and move straight to step iii to plan our ingredients and process based on our goal.
Even though upcycling can feel alchemical at times, it’s not always possible to just turn lead into gold.
Not all by-products can become whatever we want them to become, or whatever we might imagine they could become—simply because of what they are made of.
Understanding the basic composition of the by-product—what nutrients, molecules, and microbes it contains—guides us toward realistic and meaningful options. There is no point trying to coax umami out of something that doesn’t contain protein, because umami compounds arise from amino acids, nucleotides and peptides that are released when proteins break down through enzymatic activity, fermentation, cooking and/or ageing processes. No protein, no umami. Nor is there much point trying to feed microbes with something that has no usable carbohydrates, because most microbes involved in fermenting foods need fermentable sugars or starches as an energy source; otherwise they can’t metabolise or produce the acids, alcohols, gases or flavour, aroma and other compounds we’re hoping for.
So if we have a specific food by-product in mind that we would like to use, we always have to ask ourselves: ‘what does this actually have the potential to become?’
See also: ‘Recipes’ for a full list of our publicly available recipes and a summary of some major food by-products.
iii. What do we need?
Now that we have a specific end goal in mind and we know the composition of the specific by-product that we want to use, what else do we need to add to our recipe to make it work? And which other ingredients could provide them?
Do we need more:
protein?
carbohydrates?
lipids?
texture adjustment?
microbes?
enzymes?
flavour?
For example, if we want to make a miso using a carbohydrate-rich by-product that doesn’t contain much protein, like pumpkin skin, then we will need to add extra protein (e.g. with TVP). Otherwise, what we are making will not be a miso but closer to a shio kōji or amazake, depending on the method.
Do the other ingredients we are adding and processes we are using also fit in with our end goal? If not, what else could we use instead? For example, if we want to make a pumpkin skin miso but don’t want to use TVP made from industrially produced soy, is there another ingredient with similar functional properties (high protein, low moisture, neutral flavour, high absorbency) that we could use?
See also: What’s in a name?
iv. What else do we need to consider?
Finally, some other important considerations will help to frame our approach.
Who is the intended audience for this product?
Are we making this as a scalable, profitable product for industry? Or is it intended to be more of an inspiring storytelling device for restaurants? Or a simple recipe that anyone could make at home? Or something else?
Do we want to use up the by-product at all costs, or are other factors also important, like labour, time or energy use?
Is it actually worth doing? Will it require more resources to create than is justifiable by the value it provides?
And many more…
How might we need to adjust the by-product and other ingredients we're using, our process and our end goal to account for these different factors?
See also: ‘Tradeoffs in upcycling’
v. A brief example: BSG miso
Kim was asked to host a social event for the Biosustain Brewer’s Club and Biosustain Early Researchers Association. The intention was to host a workshop where participants could make an umami-rich condiment using Brewer’s Spent Grain (BSG) provided by the Brewer’s Club. The end product needed to be simple enough that multiple participants could make it during the session and then take it home to continue fermenting, which would ideally take no longer than three months. Given this brief and following some discussion between Kim and the event planners, they chose to make a miso. Kim had made BSG miso before, but knew that he needed to develop the recipe further to fit the constraints of the session.
Here is a breakdown of the approach he took:
Step 1: Why am I making this?
To fulfil a request to make a fermented umami-rich condiment, using BSG provided by the Brewer’s Club, that people can make during a workshop and take home on the same day, which will finish fermenting within three months.
Step 2: What do I have?
BSG was the main by-product to focus on. Its composition (when dehydrated) is:
| Component | % mass |
|---|---|
| Insoluble fibre | 35-60 |
| Protein | 15-30 |
| Soluble carbohydrates | 3-12 |
| Lipids | 3-10 |
| Water | 4-5 |
Step 3: What do I need?
To make a delicious miso out of BSG, Kim needed to account for its composition and other properties by doing the following:
| What do we need to account for? | How will we do that? |
|---|---|
| BSG has a fibrous, unpalatable texture | Milling it in a wet mill for 24 hours |
| Miso should be a thick, smooth paste | Adjust the water content to ensure the end product remains a thick paste, by accounting for the water used to mill the BSG and adding dried soy TVP to absorb excess water |
| Needs additional carbohydrates to feed microbes | Add rice kōji |
| Needs enzymes to break down proteins and produce umami | Add rice kōji |
Step 4: What else do I need to consider?
Using kōji satisfied the event planners’ desire for a workshop with an inspiring, storytelling element. Kōji has an almost magical ability to transform simple ingredients into something far more complex, which inspires both beginners, like the workshop participants, and those of us who work with it daily. Its use also links modern upcycling to centuries of fermentation tradition.
More practically, to make it possible for participants to prepare the miso in a single workshop, with further fermentation afterwards, Kim provided them with fresh kōji and pre-milled BSG purée. He also tweaked the recipe to include 50% kōji by mass of the other ingredients to ensure that the product would finish fermenting within 3 months.
Check out our BSG miso recipe here, which Kim slightly adapted for this workshop, as outlined above.
Following these steps and answering these questions ensures an intentional upcycling R&D: one that helps us develop upcycled products that meet specific needs, are attentive to the properties and limitations of the by-products they are made from, and are situated meaningfully within a wider context. Doing so can help upcycling reach its full transformative potential.
Contributions & acknowledgements
This guide arose from an idea Kim shared at our monthly group seminar. Eliot worked with Kim and Josh to develop it further into this article.
The header image is taken from the delightfully strange Codex Seraphinianus (Luigi Serafini, 1981).
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