Around 3,4 million tonnes of spent grain from the brewing industry and over 1 million tonnes of vegetable trimmings from the vegetable processing industry (Eurostat data) are produced in the EU every year. These plant-derived waste co-products are known to contain significant amounts of valuable components, which remain unexploited waste in the current processes.

A sustainable future for food processors requires that these co-products are exploited and upgraded to:

	···················································································································································································· Reduce the environmental impact of food waste (reducing landfill, lessening noxious residues and odours) ····················································································································································································
	Enhance the sustainable management of organic matter from food production and processing; contribute to integrated resource and waste management (IRWM) ····················································································································································································
	Promote environmentally-friendly processing methods ····················································································································································································
	Increase industrial competitiveness ····················································································································································································
	Contribute to food quality and safety ····················································································································································································
	Provide with natural additives and components to food, feed and pharmaceutical industries ····················································································································································································
	Shift the technological exploitation of biomaterials (extensive to other industrial sectors) ····················································································································································································

Economically viable up-grading requires whole-waste utilisation and therefore a very high degree of multidisciplinarity in the R&D process.

Who can benefit from REPRO?
The main target organisations benefiting from REPRO outputs would be:

	···················································································································································································· Food industries from the brewery and vegetable processing sectors ····················································································································································································
	Food industries from related sectors (cereal processing, juices, other beverages…) with similar waste problems and potential for valuable products recovery ····················································································································································································
	Food industries looking for added-value ingredients (nutraceuticals, etc.) ····················································································································································································
	Animal feed industries, especially fish feed manufacturers as specifically addressed within the project ····················································································································································································
	Pharmaceutical companies looking for new/alternative compounds from natural sources ····················································································································································································
	Companies involved in process engineering and equipment design and manufacturing ····················································································································································································
	Companies interested in new market opportunities ····················································································································································································
	Research organisations involved in organic waste upgrading, bioprocesses, innovative separation and extraction technologies, hybrid processes, etc. ····················································································································································································