Why is Tate & Lyle Redistributing Processed Citrus Pulp?

Across the world, 30 March marks the United Nations’ International Day of Zero Waste.

This year’s focus is on food and how organisations can promote circularity, through climate plans, food waste reduction targets and public-private partnerships.

Every year, around one billion tonnes of edible food is thrown away, showing the scale of the issue which requires redesigning global food systems.

To help build these circular food systems, ingredient solutions provider Tate & Lyle has announced the extension of its partnership with Van Triest CirQlar.

Partnering for food waste management

Van Triest CirQlar specialises in the purchasing and sales of co-products and is part of animal feed business ForFarmers.

Under the agreement, the company will manage the main aspects of citrus pulp co-product sales and distribution from Tate & Lyle’s pectin production facility in Großenbrode, Germany.

This pectin is a nature-based ingredient derived from citrus fruit peels, which is a co-product of the juice industry.

During the production of pectin, there is nutritious material left over that becomes a citrus pulp co-product, which is widely used as animal feed.

Tate & Lyle supplies this natural animal feed to livestock farmers in northern Germany, which helps to reduce waste from this production process.

Roel van Haeren, Managing Director at Van Triest CirQlar Europe, says: “This partnership aligns with our objective to lead in managed co-product value chains and is an important step in further strengthening our relationship with Tate & Lyle.

“It is a strategic expansion of our activities in Germany and our citrus pulp position in this market.

“It’s exactly how Van Triest CirQlar grows – by professionalising co-product streams and turning them into dependable, circular value.”

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Circularity at the Großenbrode facility

In 2024, Tate & Lyle acquired its Großenbrode facility, which has supplied farmers in northern Germany with citrus pulp co-products for animal feed for more than forty years.

This helps ensure the beneficial use of a significant residual stream from production while generating additional value for the company.

Tate & Lyle already had a partnership with Van Triest CirQlar for several of its corn-based co-products in its facility in the Netherlands.

Through this new partnership, Tate & Lyle is strengthening the commercial and operational performance of its co-products.

Sönke Schweiger, Tate & Lyle Plant Director in Großenbrode, says: “At our Großenbrode facility, we turn upcycled citrus peels into high value ingredients and give their co-products a second life – that’s circularity in action.

“With this expanded partnership, we can maximise the commercial and environmental value of our pectin production.

“By harmonising our co-products models across two sites drawing on external expertise, we can focus on delivering high quality, functional food and drink ingredients that support healthier diets while caring for our planet and making good use of its resources.”

The agreement aims to bring long-term market access and structured pricing for Großenbrode’s capacity of citrus pulp co-product.

This reduces commercial risk and increases planning reliability at the facility.

Tate & Lyle will rely on Van Triest CirQlar’s specialised market expertise, customer network and active market management, in order to optimise value realisation.

The partnership will introduce a model which brings benefits such as strengthening circular value chains and allowing Tate & Lyle to focus on its core food and drink ingredient customer offering.

Tate & Lyle’s waste reduction strategy

Tate & Lyle’s partnership forms part of its wider sustainability strategy.

This focuses on caring for the environment and minimising its impact through its supply chain and operations.

It has a target to beneficially use 100% of its waste by 2030, especially with waste from its corn wet milling process.

This waste is organic matter which can be used as nutrients for animals and land of local farms.

By 2025, Tate & Lyle achieved a 90% share of its waste being beneficially used, which was helped by its commitment to improve waste management in every one of its sites worldwide.