Introducing: Imke Welzen of Looop

"The world is changing rapidly. We are facing major challenges, such as climate change and a growing population. This growing population leads to more production and therefore more residual streams, our co-products. One of the biggest consumers of these co-products is the livestock industry, this sector is able to turn large volumes into high-quality food products such as milk, meat and eggs. But at the same time, we are also seeing a shrinkage in the livestock population. It is clear that these developments will continue. So we need to find other ways to give those co-products a place in the future.

But science is not standing still; we see a lot of innovation in this field. There are numerous companies, initiatives and knowledge centers working on circular solutions. At Looop, we have the advantage of having the entire supply chain in-house. As a result, we are perfectly capable of moving with these organizations and thus finding new valuable destinations for our by-products.'

New Applications

'With the innovation team, we are constantly working on finding new applications for residual streams. Think, for example, of bioplastics; biodegradable polymers that can serve as a replacement for for example, cutlery, cups and foils. As a society, we are incredibly dependent on plastics, for example packaging materials to prevent food waste. At the same time, we also have a plastic (waste) problem, for which biodegradable plastics could be one of the solutions. We would like to see if we can use our waste streams as primary raw materials to produce those kinds of plastics.

Another telling example is the production of renewable fuel, such as bioethanol. It is expected that the market for bioethanol (produced from waste streams) will grow tremendously, reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. Another example is insects as an alternative source of protein. In that area, too, developments are following very rapidly.'

'Looop is chain manager, which means we move through the entire circular chain. From production to logistics and buyers. In doing so, we continuously work with partners. Startups, for example, innovators who are reshaping society with circular motives. Ultimately, these are the people who are building a sustainable future. And that's where Looop would like to play a role.

In addition, we have several knowledge partners such as Avans Hogeschool, the HAN and Wageningen University, but we also work closely with parties such as LIOF. It is important to bring together a wide range of expertise, this is how the best developments and sustainable collaborations ultimately emerge. In this, Looop acts as a hub in which we connect all these different parties to work together on circular solutions.

For me personally, it's a great challenge: I get energy from working with and connecting people who are passionate about their innovative ideas and initiatives. These are the people who are going to shape the future.'

Sharing knowledge

Innovation and research in the field of circular business are gaining momentum. This is resulting in a fragmentation of knowledge. If we want to move toward a sustainable future, we need to work together. This is starting to happen more and more, but I often still see reluctance. Parties, understandably, do not always want to share everything with each other. However, it is essential that we join hands and work together on circular solutions. It takes a whole team of specialists to pull off such an innovation. Only by doing it together can we make faster progress!