Podcast #49 · Dan Kurzrock · Edible Upcycling @ Regrained

“Dan is the Co-Founder and Chief Grain Officer of ReGrained, a mission-driven ingredient platform that leverages technology and culinary science to transform beer waste into food. Dan is an entrepreneurial systems thinker and loves tackling seemingly intractable problems through creative entrepreneurship and cross-sectoral collaboration. Through ReGrained, he has become a thought-leader about food waste business models, “edible upcycling” and the circular economy for food.”

“ReGrained rescues the nutritious grain created every time beer is brewed. Powered by patent-pending tools and culinary creativity, [they] elevate this overlooked but awesome ingredient to the hero status it deserves with [their] award-winning upcycled nutrition bars, puffs and premium ingredients.” 

In this episode, we cover the following: 

• Dan’s background growing up in California and his early exposure to the natural world (~01:20)
• Dan’s early journey with upcycling food waste while brewing beer at college (~03:20)
• How studying an MBA in Sustainable Management helped Dan develop the idea into a full-time business and what he learned in his studies (~08:30)
• What exactly is ReGrained and edible upcycling? (~11:25)
• The problem with food waste and what is “food” anyway? (~13:40)
• Taking on waste from breweries (~16:35)  
• Why the grain that comes from brewery waste is “supergrain” (~18:20)
• The product(s) that ReGained make (~19:30)
• The challenge with food packaging and the move away from and now towards compostable packaging (~20:45)
• Dan’s thoughts on being a B-Corp and the role of business in driving change (~26:45)
• Dan’s thoughts on purpose and doing something that matters (~29:20)
• Dan’s advice for other entrepreneurs (~30:45)
• What’s next for ReGrained? (~31:35)
• How to support ReGrained, where to buy their bars and some exciting new products about to be released (~33:50)
• Dan’s advice for humanity (~38:05)