From insight to impact: Researching collaborative colutions to address food surplus
Alumni Stories: Aline von Jüchen reflects on her WFSC Summer School experience, sharing how it ignited her passion for sustainable food systems and shaped her current research on surplus food and collaborative solutions.
A Transformative Summer
In August 2021, I participated in the WFSC Summer School in Rheinau. This experience marked my return to a more social life in the city after living in the Swiss mountains during COVID-19, where I gained firsthand agricultural experience at external page Alpage de CottierDespite the necessity of wearing masks, the WFSC team did a great job in creating an inclusive and trusting atmosphere, allowing us to reconnect socially.
The Human Element of Food Systems
The summer school deeply impacted my understanding of food systems. The sheer scale of the challenges and the complexity of the systems are striking. It made me realize that food systems are inherently a “people's business”. Improving them requires listening, compromise, and acceptance that food is deeply personal to each of us. This understanding of food as a cultural and emotional element of our lives now guides my work in research.
Research in Action: Rethinking Food Surplus
Today, I work as a research associate at the University of Applied Sciences of Northwestern Switzerland, with most of my projects related to our food system. For example, I’m currently supporting external page Circunis in their endeavor to establish a unique business model for handling surplus food and side streams from production and wholesale. They’ve created a B2B marketplace where companies and institutions can upload and purchase surplus foods from one another. This initiative ensures that surplus food can be transformed into delicious products or meals instead of ending up in biogas plants.
Unlike common second-hand platforms (like Riccardo or Tutti), Circunis does not profit from marketplace trades or advertisements. Instead, they operate on a participation fee and rely on trust-based trading. They also offer additional services, leveraging their extensive knowledge of participants’ needs. Circunis sees itself as a facilitator, connecting needs and competencies within the sector to everyone’s benefit. However, numerous hurdles exist, such as overly complex administrative processes within the companies dealing with surplus food and a general focus on immediate economic gain over long-term systemic benefits. Most of these challenges demand time, trust- building, and active listening to understand the specific issues faced by companies.
Collaborative Solutions for Food By-Products
Recognizing that many problems cannot be solved by a single entity, we also strive to create spaces for collaborative solution development, testing, and implementation. A good example is the challenge of sorting outflows from vegetables and potatoes stock keeping. Many vegetables are discarded due to visual imperfections or incorrect specifications such as size or shape.
In a project with Swisscofel (Association of the Swiss Fruit, Vegetable and Potato Trade), Swisspatat (Sector Organization for Swiss Potatoes), and Circunis, we are working to identify new business models that make utilizing these sorting outflows more attractive. We are also collecting existing knowledge about "upcycling" companies that create food from typically wasted materials, such as spent malt grains in beer production or imperfect vegetables. Our goal is to map success factors and common hurdles in this area. If you know of any companies working with otherwise wasted food (by-)products, please reach out and share!
Co-creating New Opportunities
This autumn, we plan to facilitate workshops with companies that have sorting outflows from their stock vegetables and potatoes. This will allow us to learn from their experiences and develop new ideas. Learning from past experiences helps us address the potential hurdles proactively rather than repeating mistakes. Also, some ideas that were previously unfeasible in in different settings or times might now be viable. These ideas will then be further developed with experts from various sectors into concepts that can lead to concrete business plans.
Just as important as the actors facing a problem are those who can potentially solve it. In our case, these include companies that process vegetables and potatoes into new products, as well as retailers and gastronomy suppliers. We aim to bring together people from all stages in the food value chain who are eager to change a small part of the system, fostering solutions that benefit everyone involved.
Why Food System Work Matters
Working and researching in the food sector can often feel daunting. Nonetheless, I am convinced that it is worthwile. We are all part of a system that needs change, and together, we can make it happen.
Aline von Jüchen holds a BSc in Energy and Environmental Technology and a MSc in Sustainable Development. She works as research associate at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), where she leads applied research projects in the field of sustainable food systems. Her work at the Centre for Sustainable Business & Circular Economy focuses on fostering innovation through collaborative projects between start-ups, companies, and academic institutions. She combines expertise in qualitative research methods, market and policy analysis, and stakeholder engagement to explore systemic solutions for more sustainable and just food systems. In addition to her research and consulting activities, she teaches in the BSc Energy and Environmental Technology and coaches Data Science students in Sustainability. Prior to her current position, she gained experience in energy consulting and environmental education. She brings a strong background in project management, intercultural communication, and policy-oriented work at the intersection of food, energy, and sustainability.