Heads and shells that account for around half of the biomass of cold water shrimp are the target of an ambitious venture between Royal Greenland and Danish biotech pioneer Reduced.
The partnership aims to transform side streams from shrimp processing into clean-label, high performance taste concentrate, utilising Reduced’s own fermentation-based platform for shrimp shells and heads. Traditionally used for low-cost food and feed ingredients, this material is now being upcycled into a natural concentrate with exceptional flavour and broad application potential.
‘At Royal Greenland, we work to use our resources responsibly. Therefore, we are also proud to enter into a collaboration that clearly demonstrates that good taste solutions and circular thinking can easily go hand in hand,’ said Kristian Ottesen at Royal Greenland.
‘By upcycling the by-products from production, we not only create new high-quality products, but we also reduce waste and actively contribute to the future of food production. Whenever we fish, we have a responsibility to manage the catch in the best possible way.’
The partnership brings together the scale and supply chain credibility of Royal Greenland’s MSC-certified shrimp with Reduced’s fermentation expertise to demonstrate how side streams have potential for high-value taste additives, demonstrating both strong commercial potential and a clear path toward more resource-efficient seafood production.
‘Circularity only succeeds when it creates real value,’ said Emil Munck de Voss, CEO and co-founder of Reduced.
‘In this partnership, we are proving that by applying our fermentation platform we can not only address side stream utilisation but also deliver a product that chefs and manufacturers genuinely want to use because of its outstanding taste.’
There’s a lot to play for in such a collaboration, as the global shrimp market was valued at US$56.33 billion in 2022 and is projected to continue to grow, while flavour enhancers that are often derived from shrimp shells represent a healthy proportion of the overall market for marine extracts and powders.
Reduced is a venture established in 2020 by the partnership of lawyer Emil Munck de Voss and chef William Anton Lauf Olsen, with the concept of turning food waste into extraordinary taste, using upcycled ingredients and fermentation. The company’s Waste to Taste (W2T) technology transforms food side streams into premium savoury concentrates, reducing waste and creating clean-label ingredients.
‘Using koji fermentation combined with other process steps, we create additive-free flavours in just three days, with ten times less energy and up to 83% lower CO2 emissions,’ Reduced claims.
‘At Royal Greenland, we are constantly looking for opportunities to improve what we do. The collaboration with Reduced is a strong example that while we can achieve a lot on our own, a solid partner can help open new doors,’ Kristian Ottesen said.
‘In this case, Reduced enables us to utilise our by-products more efficiently without the need for major infrastructural changes. It exemplifies so well how respect for the entire product forms the glue in our work.’
