At the intersection of environmental crisis and technological innovation stands Ingmar Hogoy, a man turning the tide on food waste. As the Founder and CEO of Greentech Innovators, Ingmar isn’t interested in platitudes—he’s after results. With a laser focus on the often-ignored menace of food waste, he is challenging industries, governments, and individuals alike to rethink their relationship with what we discard.
Driven by a profound understanding of the environmental crisis, Ingmar has dedicated his career to revolutionizing waste management. With a track record spanning over three decades in aquaculture and fisheries, he brings a unique perspective to tackling one of the world’s most pressing challenges.
Ingmar’s journey from witnessing the stark reality of food waste to conceptualizing groundbreaking solutions is a testament to his entrepreneurial spirit and unwavering commitment to sustainability. His philosophy of ‘giving waste a value’ is not just a slogan but a driving force behind Greentech Innovators’ mission to create a world where food waste is a resource, not a problem.
Let’s delve deeper into Hogoy’s inspiring journey as he shares his insights on the potential of food waste, the evolution of waste management, and his vision for a world where waste is a thing of the past.
As the founder of Greentech Innovators, what inspired you to focus on circular solutions for food waste?
Some Years ago, I was driving from my home to work in the city of Bergen in Norway, and I regularly saw truckloads of food waste and I passed the smokey chimney from the incineration plant, the largest CO2 emitter in the city. One day I did see the rainbow ending up at the chimney, and we all know that the treasure of gold is at the end of the rainbow.
I realized that food waste is a global problem responsible for 9 % of global CO2 emission and 11 % of Methane emission and polluting water and air. Just like I earlier in my career found that waste from aquaculture was valuable resources that we managed to utilize as high-quality protein I also realized that food waste contains valuable resources that are not utilized.
I wanted to use my experience from developing circular solutions in aquaculture and fisheries to find a way to utilize food waste and we established Greentech Innovatorsto develop a solution to the global food waste problem.
What’s the most surprising or unconventional use of food waste you’ve discovered or developed in your career?
I used to work as a business developer at the Technology transfer office supporting scientists in commercializing research and one of the existing projects was to utilize tunicates, a marine organism that is often considered to be a pest for shellfish farmers. In this project we managed to develop a product that is used to build organs in the medical sector.
You’ve been working on solutions for organic waste from aquaculture and fisheries for over 30 years. How has the industry’s approach to waste management evolved during this time?
When I started in this business, I was working at a salmon processing plant and there was no waste management solution for the viscera and cuttings. This became an environmental problem, but we realized that we wasted high quality protein and omega-3 oils. Then I got a job in a pioneer company, and we established a solution to produce fish protein concentrate as a high value feed ingredient as animal feed.
Later I have participated in developing fish protein concentrate from wild fish and documented this to be an excellent feed ingredient for salmon. Later we developed fish protein powder and collagen for human consumption. The fish powder was excellent for malnourished people. We have also utilized shrimp shells as a flavor all from side streams from aquaculture and fisheries.
Most of the side streams, which are not called waste any longer from fisheries and aquaculture, are now utilized in Norway and it is a profitable industry with positive environmental impact.
We got intrigued by your philosophy of “giving waste a value”. Can you shed some light on it? How does this translate into practical solutions?
All the traditional waste solutions like landfills, incineration, composting, and Biogas are polluting air and water, and the economic value creation is negative. That is why You must pay to get rid of Your waste.
We are wasting one third of the food produced and sending the CO2 captured by photosynthesis back to the atmosphere without utilizing it. This Is like putting one third of the farmers acre on fire after spending arable land, fertilizer,and energy to produce it.
With our solution we are extracting the carbohydrates in food waste and use it for production of high value protein and omega-3 feed by fermentation. We are utilizing the nutrient already produced, reducing GHG and producing feed that is in global demand. This is value both in the financial and environmental meaning of the word.
We are using something there is too much of like food waste to produce something in global demand omega-3 oil and protein.
In your journey as a CEO, what has been your most inspiring moment, and how has it shaped your leadership style?
I have a lot of inspiration from the book “The man who fed the world” Describing Nobel Peace Prize winner Laurea Norman Borlaug and his work to modernize agriculture and his battle to End World Hunger. This is often described as “the green revolution.” Already at the age of 12 I started fish farming and wanted to be part of the blue revolution Aquaculture that I was working in for many years. Aqua culture is now producing more food than fishing. By utilizing food waste to aquaculture feed I feel like being part of the Blue green revolution.
As a founder and CEO, I am always inspired when young people contact me and want to work for us. This gives me hope for the future. When working with New and innovative ideas my philosophy to employees is that it is acceptable to make mistakes. We are learning by failing and experience together with available knowledge.
How do you approach educating the public and changing perceptions about food waste and its potential value?
This is a challenge and still we have a job to do. From my experience with fish waste, we managed to teach the fish farmers to change their attitude from handling waste to managing valuable resources. We managed to do this by using “carrot” and stitch. We gave a premium price to excellent quality and punished inferior quality economically. This works. We must do the same for educating households to sort food waste. The attitude must be changed, and food waste must be converted to be a valuable resource as feed, just like they did before the urban lifestyle became common. It should not be an environmental problem.
What role do you see emerging technologies like AI and blockchain playing in the future of sustainable food production and waste management?
This is not my field of expertise, but AI will impact the whole society and environmental problems and pollution. I believe we may get Use of AI to control the shopping and not produce and buy too much. This is for the whole food chain.
What legacy do you hope to leave behind through Greentech Innovators?
I hope we can contribute to opening the eyes to people that food waste is a resource and when utilizing it become a contribution to increase global food production and reduce GHG emission.
We have a solution that will give substantial reduction of GHG emission and increase global food production when we scale our solution globally. I hope that will be our legacy and contribution to a more sustainable behavior.
What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs who want to make a significant impact in sustainable technology?
When talking to my team and meeting the challenges I compare being an entrepreneur with sport. Not a 100 m sprint, not a marathon, but the toughest sport triathlon. We need to manage many different tasks for a long time. To an entrepreneur I will advise him/her to have stamina and believe in your idea.
More About Ingmar Hogoy
Ingmar Hogoy has over 30 years of experience in aquaculture, specializing in circular solutions for organic waste. A chemical engineer and business strategist, he has led R&D, product development, and startups, inventing patents that redefine sustainable practices. His expertise spans protein recovery, biotechnology, and fish health, driving innovation in the industry.
