In the Netherlands, many people work passionately with biomass as a raw material. They work on innovations, improve (production) processes or create policy for a fossil-free future. In this mini-series we highlight what drives them to work on the transition to a sustainable world.
In a world where sustainability is increasingly central, the story of PeelPioneers is an example of how a seemingly mundane problem can lead to innovative solutions. It all started about ten years ago, when the popularity of orange juice machines in supermarkets peaked. Consumers enjoyed the convenience and freshness of freshly squeezed juice, but at the same time a new problem arose: what to do with the mountains of orange peels that were left behind as a byproduct?
We spoke with Peter Roosink, who has been serving as Innovation Lead at PeelPioniers for 2,5 years. Peter received his education at the HAS in Den Bosch and also obtained a master's degree in Food Industry Management in England. This background has given him an extensive knowledge base about the food and agricultural sector. Peter is particularly interested in new business models that can make an impact beyond traditional technologies. After a period as a management trainee, during which he mainly carried out strategic work, he felt the need to gain practical experience and make his mark in practice.
Peter talks about the origins of PeelPioneers: “Traditional waste processing methods turned out to be unsuitable for orange peels; they were too sour to ferment and too wet to burn. This brought a new challenge for the waste management industry, but also an opportunity for innovation. It was in this context that PeelPioneers was born.”
Founded in 2017 by Lindy Hensen, Bas van Wieringen and Sytze van Stempvoort, PeelPioneers brought together a unique team with different backgrounds and areas of expertise. While Sytze came from a technical background, Bas and Lindy brought experience in waste processing and entrepreneurship. Together they saw an opportunity to turn orange peels into a valuable raw material, instead of simply waste.
It started with a simple warehouse in Amsterdam, where the founders started collecting orange peels and experimenting with different processing methods. One of the biggest challenges, however, was the legal battle to no longer consider orange peels as waste, but as a valuable raw material for new products. The PeelPioneers team was able to overcome this legal hurdle, paving the way for further development.
A crucial aspect of PeelPioneers' success was establishing an efficient supply chain. By entering into partnerships with supermarkets, caterers and catering establishments throughout the Netherlands, PeelPioneers managed to ensure a constant flow of orange peels to their factory. Here the peels were turned into a wide range of valuable products, including citrus fibers, essential oils and orange cubes.
Peter: “An additional advantage is that we have an extremely stable supply of the product, because the supermarkets buy their fruit in Argentina, China and Spain and always have fresh oranges on the shelves. Companies that purchase directly from Italy or Spain are more dependent on the agricultural industry. If a harvest goes wrong, they immediately have a problem. PeelPioneers always receives a perfect, high-quality product, continuously throughout the year.”
PeelPioneers makes oil from orange peels. Although producing oil from peels in itself is not new – large industrial juice companies in Spain also do this – the use of a residual stream for this purpose is unique. In the Netherlands, this approach was even completely new.
The oil that PeelPioneers produces comes exclusively from oranges, as the juice machines in supermarkets only juice oranges. This oil can be further broken down into two components. The first is a concentrated oil with intense aromas, colors and flavors. This concentrate is used, among other things, in special beers, where the amount of oil must be limited so as not to lose the foam.
The second part of the oil is a substance that acts as a degreaser and antimicrobial agent. This component is suitable for use in cleaning products.
Peter: “You're still a long way off, because only 0,1% of the shell is oil and we naturally want to valorize the biomass to a higher level. If you only take out 0,1% and you are left with 99,9%, while you do all those logistical movements and then still throw away waste, then you do not gain much in terms of sustainability at the bottom line.”
PeelPioneers' development process focused on finding opportunities for the remaining pulp of the clean orange peels. They started feeding this pulp to livestock, a new application made possible by strict quality control that left the peels clean and homogeneous. The strict quality control that makes the peels clean and homogeneous made a new application possible, namely feeding the pulp to livestock.
The ultimate goal of PeelPioneers is to maximize the value of all components of the orange peel. Livestock feed is relatively low on this ladder; the ambition is to bring food back to food. This endeavor has led to the production of citrus fiber. The factory in Den Bosch was built to produce and market this citrus fiber on a large scale. Citrus fiber, which comes from about half of the dry matter of the orange, is used in foods for water and oil binding and structural improvement. In addition, it can replace E numbers, which makes it a popular ingredient. The demand for citrus fiber has strongly stimulated PeelPioneers' growth in recent years.
The most beautiful peels are kept aside and cut into cubes, which are then sent to a company in Friesland to be cooked in sugar syrup. This results in sukade, known from currant bread, for example.
Although much of the orange peel is processed, water and sugar – in the form of juice – remain. This product is released in various places in the factory and has been an important focus for Peter over the past two years. A research program into precision fermentation has been started to extract various products from the sugar juice through the growth of various organisms.
Peter is mainly concerned with new business, products and business activities for the future. This includes the second generation of existing ingredients and the development of new ingredients from existing residual flows. His main task is to extract more value from the peel, which he does with a small team. “Working in a small team requires a lot of creativity and leads to new developments, because everyone is continuously aware of the commercial and technical challenges and can quickly come up with solutions.”
Peter is strongly focused on innovation, especially with bio raw materials. His education at HAS gave him insight into current food production models and their advantages and disadvantages. He has always wanted to contribute to a sustainable future and found his place in the plant-based biobased sector, away from the dairy and meat industry. Pioneering a new industry, despite current opposition, offers him satisfaction and the opportunity to contribute to a greater good. Working at Peel Pioneers gives him the feeling of really creating something new, which is sometimes challenging but also full of opportunities and confidence.
