Bread Rescuers: Redusert brødsvinn gjennom innovative forretnings- og forbrukerstrategier

In Norway, approximately 300,000 loaves of bread are discarded every day, which in 2021 accounted for 18% of food waste in households and 42% of food waste in the grocery sector. Bread waste is negatively affecting both national and international sustainability goals, as well as national goals for increased self-sufficiency. Bread is also an important part of the Norwegian diet, as 96% of Norwegians eat bread. It is therefore a powerful product for the implementation of new, sustainable strategies to prevent and reduce food waste from the industry, grocery sector and consumer. Bread Rescuers develops new, sustainable strategies to prevent and reduce bread waste from the industry, grocery sector and consumers towards a halving of bread waste in Norway. The project is based on three strategies; Rethink, Reduce and Repurpose. The research project is built around principles of open innovation, ethics and sustainability thinking. The project will lead to: 1) New, science-based knowledge and methodological approaches that will be transferable to other food systems. 2) Recommendations for households, industry and politicians that promote circular economy in the bread value chain. Here are some of the project's activities and findings so far. Rethink A literature review reveals various solutions against bread waste, with a focus on solutions for human consumption. The solutions will be evaluated for relevance and applicability in a Norwegian context. Furthermore, 20 semi-structured interviews have been conducted with experts across the value chain for bread value, with the aim of exploring barriers, pitfalls and solutions based on 5 scenarios (due diligence, donation, discount, competence and consumer scenarios) from the Norwegian Food Waste Committee’s (Matsvinnutvalget) recommendations on measures to halve food waste in Norway by 2030. The results can support industry and policy makers to ensure a holistic approach to reduce bread waste in a value chain perspective. Interviews and surveys with children, parents, and primary school teachers suggest that simple measures—such as involving the child in preparing their packed lunch and allowing sufficient time and focus on the meal in the classroom—can help reduce bread waste from school meals. Reduce Freezing saves bread, but a survey conducted in June 2024 among 1,000 respondents shows that only 1 in 5 households freeze bread systematically. The project also investigated how to ensure the best possible sensory quality when freezing/thawing bread by using Nofima's professional sensory panel. The experiment concluded with 4 key pieces of advice for the consumer: Freeze the bread in a freezer bag, close the bag, freeze the bread in slices, and if freezing whole/half bread: thaw it in the refrigerator. In autumn 2025, an intervention study on reducing bread waste in households is ongoing. Consumer interviews are also planned regarding low-price strategies for bread before closing time in grocery stores.. Repurpose A small-scale baking experiment in which bread crumb flour from dry bread (white, kneipp or wholemeal bread) were used in recipes for, e.g., new bread and muffins, show that it is possible to substitute conventional flour with up to 10% crumb flour in new bread and in muffins without compromising on important functional properties in the dough or sensory quality of the newly baked products. When the proportion of crumb flour increased in the products, volume, color, and taste were affected. This varied depending on the types of bread used to produce the crumb flour. More baking experiments and further development of recipes will be pursued in cooperation with the project’s industry partners. Further work in the project will, among other things, investigate and document the economic and environmental impact of the solutions being developed.

In Norway 300.000 bread loaves are discarded daily, accounting for 18% of all food waste at consumer level and 42% at retail level. Bread waste counteracts national and international sustainability goals, as well as national goals on increased self-sufficiency. As bread has a very high market penetration (96% of consumers) it is an impactful product for getting producers, retailers and consumers' attention to food waste and for implementing sustainable waste prevention and reduction strategies. The overall objective of Bread Rescuers is to develop science-based knowledge and innovative strategies to provide consumers and actors in the food system with solutions to reduce Norway’s bread waste by 50 percent. In tight collaboration between cross-sector value chain actors and multidisciplinary scientists, the project will develop research and innovation to evolve the bread system from producer to consumer. Based on three pillars Rethink, Reduce and Repurpose, Bread Rescuers will: • Challenge systemic characteristics that may trigger bread waste, • Co-create bread waste reduction practices and interventions involving consumers, • Investigate possibilities to expand frozen bread as a product alternative in the retail sector, • Develop industry solutions for repurposing surplus bread into new bakery products, • Investigate the economic and environmental impact of innovative solutions. Our research approach includes looking for solutions and inspiration across the world; creating strategies with stakeholders across the bread system; conducting consumer experiments and interventions online, in households and in retail environments; and conducting baking experiments in lab and pilot scale settings, all within an RRI perspective. The final outputs of the project will be (i) New scientific knowledge and methodological approaches transferable to other food systems, (ii) Household, industry and policy recommendations promoting a circular economy in the bread value chain.