Comé Des-Hechos. Upcycling spent grain . Healthy food

Social Environmental Context: Inequality Food Nutritional Security combined with Food waste in their value chain.

Today according to the FAO, the world wastes or loses around a third of the food it produces while 821 million people go hungry. In advance by the year 2050, we will be 9 billion human beings and we will need to produce 60% more food. As food producers, we must feed the world sustainably, generate more food while reducing negative environmental impacts such as soil, water and nutrient loss, greenhouse gas emissions and degradation of ecosystems. Committed to this cause, four years ago we created "Comé Des-Hechos ", we developed a new business unit that implemented the concept "from cradle to cradle", we produce healthy food from spent grain, organic residue of the beer brewing.

We long for the democratization of food. In"Comé Des-Hechos" we make healthy foods from spent grain, organic residue of the brewing industry. We are located in Villa Elisa, La Plata, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. In La Plata there are 500 craft breweries, producing 20000 hl and generating 500,000 kgs of spent grain per month. To date, this waste is deposited in the landfill or is transferred to swine. Our project proposed a different option, is the upcyling of the byproduct of beer for human consumption. Referencing the publication of SAGE University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2016, when replacing the traditional flours by spent grain, it increases by 50% of the protein and fiber, weighing the nutritional value of the food. We create a portfolio of healthy foods: cereal bars and baked snacks, we use fresh spent grain or flour as input, we combine other raw materials from Latin America such as quinoa, amaranth, fruits and sugar mascabo. In conclusion, the countries with food and nutrition inequality have the opportunity in the beer spent grain, to incorporate a low-cost source of protein and fiber to the diet of human beings. Our project was conceived in the integration of processes in Circular Economy.

Children are mainly benefited because by consuming our food vs traditional foods they are incorporating greater nutritional value. Entrepreneurship provides benefits to the different parties involved, both our suppliers and our customers.Spent grain suppliers are the breweries that benefit from the reduction of waste, suppliers of other raw materials such as mascabo sugar, amaranth, quinoa are preferably cooperatives in this way we encourage fair trade. Regarding the clients, they are adults, who are in search of a healthier diet and aware of the care of the environment and want to provide their children with a balanced diet. 

"COME DES-HECHOS" is reflected in the reuse of organic waste from the brewing industry, in the process of preparing healthy foods. This by-product with high nutritional value is used as whole grain (fresh) or as flour, this last option converts spent grain into a stable and versatile input. Parallel to the reuse of whole grain for the preparation of baked goods, a saving of drinking water of 40% is generated, since it contains between 70/80% of water, which comes from the process of brewing beer.

To date in Argentina the spent grain is deposited in the landfill or is transferred informally to pig feed or compost. The innovation of Comé Des-Hechos de Cerveza is reflected in the reuse of organic waste from the brewing industry, in the process of preparing healthy foods. Is a different and novel option, it can coexist in parallel with these last two alternatives. This by-product with high nutritional value we use as whole grain (fresh) or as flour, processing flour, we obtained advantages such as stability and versatility to make food, expanding the variety of products, such as cereal bars. 

In our business model technology is apply in equipment for production. In order to standardize processes, increase production capacity and be more competitive. We propose a new input for the food industry.  The dehydrating machines using solar energy, are used the dry of spent grain, fruits and vegetables, since we are located in a horticulture production area in the province of Bs AS. We could take advantage of the fruit and vegetables of discarding, avoiding waste. There are also other machines that allow us make flour of the spent grain, this is a great advantage because we can incorporate spent grain flour in all our products. As a consequence we increased the nutritional value of them.

Our goal is to incorporate Blockchain in the value chain, allowing end-to-end traceability from the supplier to the customer. The Internet of Things application will ensure 3 factors that take relevance in the purchase decisions of the clients; transparency, fair trade and sustainability.

1. Environmental - Reduction of organic waste deposited in the landfill. Impact metric: 600 kg of bagasse reused. *
2.  Savings of Drinking Water. Impact Metric 40% saving, 240 liters. * 
3. Social- Nutrition, incorporation of low cost source of proteins, 30% Substitution of traditional inputs by spent grain. *
4.  Economic Development - Circular Economy, we generate a new business.  
5. * Measurement period last 12 months.

Currently we are serving 700 children.

According to UNICEF, Argentina's statistics are dramatic: 48% of children throughout the country are poor and in Greater Buenos Aires the figures reach 58.55%,this proves the dramatic situation, is the food emergency. In our city of La Plata, 61,000 children take their breakfast at public schools.

One year 5 % of the children of public school of La Plata District, 3000 children.

Five years 50% of children of public school of la Plata District, 30000 children.

1 year  Being accepted as suppliers in the school cafeterias of our own district.

5 years  Being accepted as suppliers in the school cafeterias of our own State.

4 people working

Soledad Piazza. 

Graduate International affairs, International sommelier specialized in food sensorial analysis and professor. Have been working in the food and beverage industry along 17 years. Since 2012 have had ventures related to food and beverages, such as organic bakery and craft breweries.

Pablo Legna.

Master of Business Administration in International Industrial Management and Specialization in Information Technology. (Esslingen University, Germany).Postgraduate in Organizational Culture and Identity (UBA). Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (UBA). 20 years-experience acquired in world-class companies. Advisor in CSR and Sustainability (diagnosis, design, training and implementation of Sustainability/ CSR projects). Professor at several Universities.

VP of Commission of Innovation Economic Science Professional Council.

Diego Bresler 

Grade in System Análisis And a Master in Business Administration. He worked with projects in Estrategic Planning, Entrepreneurship and Creative Industries (Food, Arts, Design, Innovation) His a professor in several Universities of Buenos Aires And Latin America. His Agency, Bresler HUB, has coached and teached allmost 3000 entrepreneurs since 2002. They use The idea of Identity as a Main subject of development.

 Florencia Pinto

Florencia belongs to the third generation of women in her family dedicated to Public Relations and communication. For the past three years, she has been working independently as a PR and communication consultant for global brands such as Fuchs and Premios Latinoamérica Verde. Since 2018, she has participated as a member of the international organization Lean In, inaugurating the circle Vida Sustentable in Argentina. Women in more than 170 countries have joined the Lean In community.

Consumers that demand products and services under criteria of fair trade and environmental care. Adults, who are in search of healthy eating, spill effect transmit patterns of consumption to their children. Children benefit from consuming our food vs traditional foods because they incorporate greater nutritional value.
Our products were tested with adults and children, have a 100% degree of acceptance and recidivism. Another target audience are companies that apply CSR policies, encouraging conscientious and responsible consumption of their employees. 

Entrepreneur Support Model  Sustainability is raised through the sale of our products. We are in the incipient and handcrafted stage, in which we process 50 kgs of bagasse per month. We are practically working at our equilibrium point, 50% of our costs, correspond to the structure of fixed costs. The step to scale would be fivefold production, processing 250 kg per month, this would allow us to increase profitability by reducing fixed costs.

Applying the Solve would help us visualize and generate greater impact in our project. It would open the doors for us to co work with government authorities.
The other opportunity that Solve provides us with is the possibility of obtaining financing to get out of the artisan stage. In order to scale our model, mainly the incorporation of machinery, in order to standardize processes, increase production capacity and be more competitive, given that we are proposing a new input to the food industry.

Another alternative may be to co-participate with a food producer, "Comé  Des-Hechos" contributes in the know-how, recipes and development of new products in society.

Applying the GM PRIZE would help us visualize and generate greater impact in our project. It would open the doors for us to co work with government authorities. The possibility of obtaining financing to get out of the artisan stage. In order to scale our model, mainly the incorporation of machinery, in order to standardize processes, increase production capacity and be more competitive, given that we are proposing a new input to the food industry.So we can reach more children with nutrition needs.