Upcycling Food Waste into Delicious Superfoods — Claire Schlemme, CEO of Renewal Mill
Led by Claire Schlemme, Renewal Mill reduces food waste by upcycling the byproduct of plant-based milk to create high-quality okara flour and baking mixes.
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What is Renewal Mill, and what do you all do?
Renewal Mill is an upcycle food company. We upcycle byproducts from food manufacturing into superfood ingredients and premium pantry staples. We are currently working with the pulp residue from plant-based milks. This pulp material is nutritious and has a lot of fiber and protein. This leftover pulp is often wasted and certainly not processed and upcycled at scale as we are attempting to do. For soy milk residue, we dry out the pulp and produce it as “okara,” which has an East Asian heritage. For oat milk, we perform a similar process and brand the material as upcycled oat protein flour. Our goal is to ultimately move beyond the plant-based milk space and continue to capture otherwise wasted sources of fiber and protein. There are numerous opportunities to do this in the tomato and potato spaces in particular.
Does Renewal Mill also aim to tackle hunger by reducing food waste?
Addressing hunger is certainly one of the missions of the company. It is incredibly frustrating that hunger is a persistent problem in a world in which we waste 30-40% of all the food that we grow. In fact, it was this paradox that led me down the path towards starting Renewal Mill, after having started a juice company in Boston. Witnessing firsthand the waste of fresh fruits was very frustrating but also elucidating. From this perspective as a food truck operator, I realized that food waste also directly correlates with the inaccessibility or unaffordability of food. It is hard to sell juice or a smoothie at an affordable price when you are paying for so much fruit but only juicing and using such a small portion of it.
How do the products that Renewal Mill contribute to a healthy lifestyle?
While much is made about protein, almost everyone gets enough dietary protein. On the other hand, many people are deficient in the consumption of fiber. There was a fascinating study from Canada that analyzed the benefits of an additional gram of fiber each day. The cost savings from the reduction in requisite health care services was substantial, on the order of many millions of dollars. Because okara has existed for such a long time, there have been peer-reviewed studies that demonstrate the health benefits of its consumption including weight regulation.
What was your background that led you to co-found Renewal Mill?
I had always enjoyed the outdoors as well as the culinary arts. After I was diagnosed with cancer in my early 20s, I came to realize the connection between how we treat the planet and how we make and consume food. I also realized that I wanted to spend my days doing the things that I was passionate about. I decided to go back to graduate school and started to dive into these topics as a starting point for a career. I was initially very focused on energy: I worked for a renewable energy company in India, attended COP conferences, and really enjoyed the experience, but I became really interested in agriculture as a potential vector for the impact which has ultimately led to Renewal Mill.
What do your products look like today, and what do you expect them to look like in 18 months?
We have the two upcycled flours in the okara and oat milk flours. We sell these products to a handful of other food product makers, such as Tia Lupita, which uses our okara product to make green tortillas, and Pulp Pantry that uses our okara flour to make grain-free chips. We also have our own branded product line in which we sell the flour directly as well as various plant-based, gluten-free, non-GMO cookie and brownie mixes. You can find these here.
From a product perspective, it was always apparent that we would need to lead with taste. We have been fortunate to work with Alice Medrich, a five-time James Beard award-winning chef that developed our recipes. We have always strived to accommodate various diets and provide clean labeling while providing sustainability advantages.
In terms of other ingredients, we are doing R&D to take advantage of leftover oils that have high antioxidant content. In terms of products, we are looking to expand into muffin and pancake mixes.
How has the company funded its growth, and how do you plan to do so in the future?
For the first two years, the company was funded through grants from both Yale and the Closed Loop Foundation. We recently received funding from Kroger as part of their Zero Hunger Initiative. We have also employed more traditional forms of capital raises with convertible and SAFE notes. Our funding sources have been mostly in the impact space. When we first incorporated the company, we did so as a public-benefit corporation, which I believe has been powerful in filtering our potential investor list to the most mission-aligned subset. We have received funding from traditional waste-to-value investors as well as an investor that focuses on plant-based food systems.
What advice would you give the version of yourself from ten years ago if you had the opportunity?
I would advise myself to worry less and just do. I think I learned throughout my 20s the importance of jumping to an area of interest and then just figuring it out.
Do you have habits or practices that keep you focused and motivated?
I think more than anything else it's the time that I spend with my 2-year-old child that provides an opportunity to take a step back and recharge. It provides an opportunity to see the world from another perspective. Taking slow observational walks with a toddler has allowed me to more closely observe the small changes in nature from day to day and season to season.
Do you have a book recommendation for listeners?
I would recommend All We Can Save, which is a great collection of essays looking at the environmental movement.
Do you have a quote that keeps you focused or motivated?
Jane Goodall said the “greatest danger to our world is apathy.” It’s so important to our work as a company and as individuals that we stay focused on outcomes and why they matter.
Do you have suggestions for those that would like to support your mission?
I would suggest that people check out our website where you can purchase our products and check out our weekly newsletter to learn more about the upcycling industry. We also helped start the Upcycle Food Association, which is in the process of certifying upcycled food products and launches in the Fall.
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Note:
THE TORCH is an interview series from Entrepreneurs for Impact. We profile CEOs and investors mitigating climate change. Our goal is to highlight their work and inspire others. As we deal with multiple crisis, from Covid and racial injustice to climate change and economic recession, we need some of this positive light in what seem like dark times. Onward and upward.