Limburg cattle feed company Nijsen ambassador of waste-free week

Feeder Nijsen company from Veulen (LB) is an ambassador for the Waste Free Week (September 7 to 13). According to the company, pigs and chickens are the key to reducing waste. Nijsen uses residual streams from the food industry to make feed for the poultry and pig sector.

John Geurts, director Nijsen company: "We avoid wasting raw materials and nutrients by using residual streams from the food industry as a raw material in the animal feed we produce. Every year Nijsen returns more than 100,000 tons of foodstuffs to the food cycle as high-quality and usable pig or chicken feed."

Other poultry company Kipster (Castenray, LB) is a customer of Nijsen. All sorts of things come back to the factory for processing. "Think of chopping scraps, (return) bread, cookies, sweets, dough, syrups and sauces. Pigs and chickens are the ideal allies to combat waste. Leftovers are processed into high-quality animal feed, which ends up back on the consumer's plate in the form of a sustainable and tasty piece of meat or egg."

Animal and insect meal

Soon to be added are products from the meat processing industry. Recently the European Parliament gave permission for residual products from slaughter animals (animal meal) and insect meal to be allowed in animal feed. A positive development, according to Geurts: "The reuse of these raw materials contributes to shorter, circular chains. In this way, the Netherlands will need to import fewer vegetable proteins, such as soy, and an important impulse will be given to the desired protein transition. Although animal meal will soon be permitted again, there are strict rules governing the use of animal and insect meal. Food safety remains the most important criterion."

Brabant Foundation

The action week is an initiative of Foundation Together Against Food Waste, which is currently campaigning with commercials on national TV. The organization has a large Brabant input and is based in Veghel. The province of Brabant, Foodtech Brainport, Meierijstad municipality, Rabobank, the Nutrition Centre and Wageningen University are named as "supporting organizations."

Source: Stal & Akker