In 2006, Urban Gleaners founder Tracy Oseran began a local movement that has grown into a vibrant volunteer-powered organization feeding thousands of families every week by rescuing fresh, unsold food—made up of the region’s best ingredients, from hand-roasted coffee and organic produce to fried chicken, gourmet deli sandwiches, and gluten-free cookies.

Urban Gleaners now feeds over 8,000 people every week through school pantries, summer free farmers markets, and Mobile Markets at low-income housing communities. Together, we can make a difference. Join Urban Gleaners as a volunteer, a food donor, or with your financial support. urbangleaners.org/volunteer 

Did you know that in most chocolate product production, only about a third of the cacao pod is used? Some might think the cacao bean is the most fruitful part of the pod, but there is so much to be tasted in the fruit itself! That’s where Blue Stripes comes in, a brand focused on letting no part of the pod go to waste.  

”Blue Stripes is SUPER excited to partner up with Salt & Straw for their innovative UPCYCLED menu! Our mission is to shed light on food waste and create real change, by upcycling 100% of the cacao pod - SHELL + FRUIT + BEANS. To be able to tell our story and the story of upcycling through ice cream is a unique opportunity for us, and we hope to educate many new fans across the country.” - Ben Stone, Marketing Manager

Learn more at bluestripes.com

The opportunity for impact and change to the food system is vast – and urgent. Few are focused on reducing the amount of waste we create in the first place. This is where Spare Food begins… at the beginning: preventing food from being wasted by shifting our perspective and making the overlooked, essential.

Whey is the co-product of Greek-style yogurt production. In this process, cultured milk is strained to remove liquid and create the thick, creamy yogurt we know and love. About 2-3 cups of liquid whey is produced for every 1 cup of yogurt manufactured, most of which gets discarded. For the yogurt industry (and environment) at large, whey as waste is a massive problem. We have a solution: keep whey as the valuable food source that it is. It’s not waste. It’s an ingredient. And it’s the primary ingredient in Spare Tonic.

Spare Food Co-founder Adam Kaye likes to say that the ethos of The Spare Food Co. is captured in every can of Spare Tonic. We take an unused ingredient and craft it into a delicious food. In the process, we eliminate climate-destructive waste, support a regional food system of farmers, producers and vendors, and bring a healthful product to market. 

Learn more at sparefood.com 

photo credit: Ben Hider

We’re thrilled to be collaborating with EverPro®, a barley rice protein that enabled us to create an ice cream that not only meets our Upcycled Certified menu requirements, but is also the FIRST allergen free Salt & Straw variety beyond a sorbet! EverPro was created by EverGrain®, AB InBev’s sustainable ingredient business that creates high quality, plant protein by upcycling brewer’s spent grain (BSG), a byproduct of the brewing process that would otherwise typically have gone to waste.

EverPro delivers almost everything you could possibly want in an ingredient – a mild flavor that is highly soluble so it can be easily paired and blended to create something as delicious as our Malted Chocolate Barley Ice Cream. And, because it’s reduces food loss, uses less water and land to grow and requires no additional transportation to produce, it is one of the most sustainable proteins on the planet. Learn more at evergrainingredients.com

We’ve been long time admirers of Renewal Mill and the work they’re doing in the Upcycled Food space. They're truly paving the way for how climate-friendly food can start impacting change. Renewal Mill is dedicated to creating a new circular economy of food that closes the loop in today’s current supply chains, keeps valuable nutrition from going to waste, and reduces the impact of the food system on the environment. And they believe that doing good for the planet should be absolutely delicious! 

Renewal Mill's proprietary production process works with all kinds of byproducts but they're first targeting the byproducts of plant-based milk production (i.e. soybean pulp and oat pulp). They dry and mill these pulps, without using synthetic processing techniques or unnatural fortification, to produce nutritious ingredients that are rich in macronutrients including fiber and protein. Renewal Mill sells these ingredients on their own to folks looking for better-for-you, better-for-the-planet flour alternatives, and also uses them to craft a line of "just add oil & water" baking mixes that can be found nationwide at Whole Foods Market. Learn more at renewalmill.com