In this Living Lab, we evaluate innovative solutions for processing surplus fruits and vegetables to combat food waste. Our initiative transforms produce that would otherwise be discarded into valuable products like juices and purees.

Surplus produce presents challenges such as seasonality, variable quantities, and limited local processing facilities, which often lead to waste. We address this by offering mobile and local processing hubs capable of handling diverse quantities and converting them into high-value products.

Our vision is to test and showcase a new business model that benefits all stakeholders by exploring both technological and economic aspects of surplus produce.

Mobile units and second-class fruits and vegetables

We evaluate the mild processing technologies performance and its combinations in various settings, including mobile units (e.g., the juice mobile processing unit developed in the EU project FOX) and existing local stationary installations (e.g., FRUCTUS JUICE and Food Pilot).

Our trials use second-class fruits and vegetables from auctions to produce juice, which we rigorously tested for safety and quality. One of the processing units included in the processing line is a Vaculiq (GEA) system, known for its compact and versatile design, which features advanced vacuum extraction technology that ensures high-quality products with excellent nutritional value and a fresh taste.

Key features include:

• High Yields: Up to 80% yield with minimal adjustments.
   
• Versatility: Suitable to process a broad diverse of feedstocks (fruits, vegetables, tubers, etc) result in applications like juices, mustard, and baby nutrition.
   
• Mobility: Skid-mounted design for flexible, location-based operation.

Testing and valuable insights

We focus on this project to address the urgent need for effective processing solutions for surplus produce.

To date, we have completed our first testing phase, which concentrated on the production of mobile unit settings. Additionally, we tested the system’s flexibility by linking a Multicut and Vaculiq (GEA) with the pasteurization line and packing unit at a stationary location. This integration allowed us to produce a variety of multi-fruit and vegetable-based juices with excellent quality and prolonged shelf life.


Valuable insights and promising results
Our tests have provided valuable insights. We found that while the mobile unit presents challenges affecting juice quality and safety - such as cleaning difficulties and equipment efficiency issues, the stationary setup delivered promising results.

We can produce high-quality, safe juices from a range of ingredients, including mixed fruits and vegetables with a sufficiently long shelf life (over 6 months up to two years).

Moving forward, we plan to focus on developing vegetable-based products, like soups, to further explore and refine our processing methods and further illustrate the efficiency and versatility of the proposed solution.