Food chain sustainability - innovation and the circular economy

Recorded: 27 July 2021 (10.00 - 12.00 UK time)

What’s this webinar about?

Following on from the food waste and net zero webinar in January, this time we’re looking at innovative approaches to sustainability issues and the circular economy. We cover the role of standards, some of the practical solutions that innovators in the food chain are working on, plus how others in the food industry can recognize and incorporate innovations in their own supply chains.

Who is this webinar for?

• Food (manufacturing, retail)
• Hospitality
• Healthcare
• Retail brands

What will you gain?

• First-hand inspiration from sector innovators
• Fresh ideas on how to support the circular economy and create more sustainable food systems
• An overview of how standards across the food chain are impacting sustainability and net zero targets 

10:00 - 10:10 Welcome and introduction - Sara Walton, Sector Lead (Food), British Standards Institution (BSI)

10:10 - 10:50 Panel Discussion - Innovation, sustainability and the food chain

Key sustainability issues that can be tackled from within the UK food chain

• Industrial biotech and the food chain - Debbie McCreath, Public Affairs Manager, IBioIC
• An incentive-based approach for improving food safety, sustainability and traceability - Dr Lili Jia, Senior Researcher, Institute for Manufacturing, Cambridge University
• Biotechnology response for new foods production: developing quality growth media for cultivated meat (using source product from food chain) - Cai Linton, Co-founder and CEO, Multus Media

10:50 - 11:30 Panel Discussion - Food chain – reuse, recycling and the circular economy

Food product used in aspects of the circular economy

• Food sector goals for Net Zero, carbon reduction targets – FDF roadmap and survey - Emma Mansbridge, Senior Sustainability and Environmental Policy Executive, Food and Drink Federation (FDF)
• Recycling coffee grounds into sustainable product - George May, Managing Director, bio-bean Limited
• Decarbonising heating and liquid fuels: HVO – recycling cooking oils - Malcolm Farrow, Head of Public Affairs, OFTEC
• Reuse and recycling of food manufacturing machinery & foodservice equipment - Paul Fieldhouse, Head of Business Development, Ramco UK

11:30 - 11:55 Q&A and panel discussion

11:55 - 12:00 Summary and close of the webinar

For a highly informative round-up of what’s happening today and tomorrow on food chain sustainability, please watch webinar now.

Sara Walton is the Food Sector Lead (Standards) for BSI, the National Standards Body for the UK and a founding member of ISO (International Organization for Standardization).

She has over 10 years’ experience of standardization, working with representative stakeholders from diverse backgrounds. I’ve led UK committees in food safety, quality and occupational health and safety, providing practical standards solutions in areas of interest to government, industry and civil society.

Sara has responsibility at BSI for standardization for the food chain, particularly addressing innovation and other key issues such as risk management, resilience and trust. 

Prior to working for BSI, Sara worked in business information publishing, creating and delivering knowledge solutions for organizations based on their legal and compliance needs.

Debbie joined the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) in Glasgow as Public Affairs Manager in April 2020. Debbie leads IBioIC’s corporate communications and public affairs agenda, with a strong focus on media and public affairs at the Scottish and UK levels respectively. Debbie has previously held corporate affairs roles with industry leading trade association the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) in London, and with Scotland’s national skills agency Skills Development Scotland.

Outside of work, Debbie is a member of the Women in Public Affairs (WiPA) Scotland Executive Committee. The WiPA network aims to bring women from all across the public affairs industry together to share experiences and insight.

Lili Jia is a Senior Research Associate and leads the Incentivising Sustainability Programme at the University of Cambridge. She holds a PhD in Economics, an M.Sc. in International Trade and a B.Sc. in Management. 

Her research interest focuses on developing interdisciplinary approaches to motivate public health and environmental sustainability. She works closely with government bodies and industries to help them design effective strategies and facilitate the transformation to a healthier and more sustainable society. Since 2019, she has been working closely with the Environment Agency and the Food Standards Agency to develop an incentive-based approach to improving environmental sustainability and food safety respectively. 

Cai Linton has a background in bioengineering from Imperial College London. During his time at university, Cai led a team investigating the differential potential of induced pluripotent stem cells according to their germ layer origin. He has also spent time working in Dr Stephanie Frank’s group in the Department of Biochemical Engineering at University College London, researching bacterial microcompartments and their applications to industrial biotechnology.

His motivation to create a sustainable future using biotechnology led him to co-found Multus Media to shorten routes to market and lower entry barriers in the cultivated meat industry.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cailinton/

Emma Mansbridge is a Senior Sustainability and Environmental Policy Executive at the Food & Drink Federation (FDF), the leading representative organisation in the food and drink manufacturing industry. She has been working at the FDF for almost four years across multiple areas covered by their environmental ambition, Ambition 2025. Her main areas of focus include water, natural capital, sustainable supply chains and, increasingly, Net Zero and decarbonisation. She has been working to help support the development of the FDF’s Net Zero Roadmap and handbook to help the industry achieve its ambition of Net Zero emissions by 2040.

George is Managing Director at bio-bean, the world’s largest and only industrial recycler of spent coffee grounds.

As one of the original team at bio-bean George has played a key part in the growth of the company, from pre-revenue through to the launch of bio-bean’s range of innovative bio-based products, including our best-selling winter fire logs, Coffee Logs, and our coffee flavour extract for use in the beverage industry. George developed a UK supply chain that processes thousands of tonnes of spent coffee from the likes of Costa Coffee, and ultimately saves tens of thousands of tonnes of CO2e.

George and the team are now working on building partnerships to incorporate recycled coffee grounds as a bulk, raw material into a range of industrial applications, including bioplastics, cosmetics, inks and automotive friction.

Prior to joining bio-bean, George was a lawyer at Ashurst LLP, specialising in project financing within the renewable energy sector.

As part of OFTEC's strategic management team, Malcolm leads on OFTEC's public affairs and communications in Great Britain. He is closely involved in OFTEC's heat policy work and oversees our web and social media activity, PR and media liaison, advertising and publishing. Malcolm joined OFTEC in 2011 after a career that has seen him work in a variety of marketing and communication roles in the charity and public sector.

Paul Fieldhouse has enjoyed a lifetime working in the food & drink sector, both as a manufacturer supplying all major supermarkets and foodservice operators and latterly as a management consultant. Paul heads up business development for Ramco, the UK’s leading supplier of sustainable disposal and reuse services for surplus assets of all types. The company with a history of partnering with the MoD, other government agencies and the wider private sector has a focus on commercial catering equipment and food machinery.

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