Valorising waste begins with understanding it. As Massimiliano D’Imperio from CNR-ISPA explains: “The first step is analysing the nutritional composition of the material. Only then can we identify which components can be recovered, and how.”

Several techniques are used: from green solvent extraction—using environmentally friendly solvents like ethanol—to biotechnological processes involving enzymes or controlled fermentation. The result? Functional ingredients for food products like bread, yoghurt, or bioactive molecules with nutraceutical potential.

Two promising examples include waste from microgreen cultivation and barley rootlets generated during beer production. “These are by-products that are currently underutilised but rich in nutrients. We aim to turn them into something useful, safe, and appealing”, concludes D’Imperio. 

One example is VALUE_PRODUCT, which uses fruit and vegetable by-products to create extracts for novel foods such as flour substitutes or sweeteners.

But waste valorisation alone isn’t enough. The challenge, as highlighted by Martina Moretton, researcher at the Edmund Mach Foundation and involved in Spoke 3, is ensuring food safety at every step: “Food safety today doesn't just mean ‘safe food.’ It means evaluating the impact of new ingredients, monitoring the entire supply chain, and ensuring that no step jeopardises health.”

Spoke 3 develops control protocols and tools capable of verifying that new ingredients—even those derived from waste—are free from chemical or microbiological contaminants and safe for daily consumption.

This is done through advanced predictive models and innovative strategies, as seen in the MICRO-RISK project, which aims to reduce microbial spoilage in foods using technologies such as electrolysed water and plasma.

Other projects like REV_AMINE focus on detecting potentially toxic compounds that are not yet legally regulated, such as amines in cheese.

The technologies involved are cutting-edge: “We use omics analyses like proteomics, metabolomics, and volatilomics,” explains Giuseppe Natrella, researcher at the University of Bari, Aldo Moro.  “These help us identify harmful molecules or pathogens quickly and accurately.”

Additional tools include sustainable spectroscopic techniques (NIR and FTIR), inspired by green chemistry, and advanced data processing methods.

Spoke 4 starts from a key premise: food safety is not enough— it’s also required to be high quality, healthy, and suited to individual needs.

“To truly innovate food systems,” says Claudia Favari from the University of Parma, “we can’t stop at safety. We must consider public health, inclusivity, and sustainability.”

One major research area involves reformulating existing foods to make them healthier and developing new products built around functional ingredients, often derived from waste.

One such innovation is plant-based oleogels: structured fats that serve as butter alternatives, ideal for plant-based ice creams and other foods where balancing health and taste is key. But that’s just the beginning. The team is also exploring the emerging field of personalised nutrition.

As Antonella Grosso, researcher at the Edmund Mach Foundation, explains:
“We can no longer think of a ‘standard consumer.’ Everyone has specific needs, based on age, metabolism, body composition, sensory preferences—even genetic responses.”

The goal is to create predictive models integrating these variables to provide tailored dietary recommendations. “The aim,” Grosso continues, “is to achieve precision nutrition that can truly improve people’s health by adapting to their characteristics and lifestyle.”

The OnFoods project demonstrates that sustainable food systems are not an abstract goal, but a scientific and technological process that spans the entire supply chain—from agricultural production to processing, from safety to nutrition.

In a world shaped by ecological crises, demographic pressures, and economic instability, food is not just an environmental issue—it’s a political and ethical one.
“We need to stop seeing waste as a system error,” one researcher concludes, “and start recognising it as a resource to understand, study, and—if it can’t be eliminated at the source—transform.”

Transforming waste into ingredients, using safety as a lever for innovation, and tailoring diets to the individual are three strategic paths that could reshape the way we conceive of food.