Building Circular Food Systems

Investing in Impact

P4G awarded the partnership $583,825 in grant funding.  

The Building Circular Food Systems partnership uses Black Soldier Fly larvae to replace protein sources such as wild-caught fish and soya, mitigating ecosystem destruction and deforestation.  

The partnership will build three new waste management and conversion facilities in Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa, and expand two existing facilities in Kenya and Tanzania. Combined, these facilities can offtake up to 90 metric tons of waste per day that would otherwise end up in landfills. Additionally, each new and expanded facility will include multiple waste aggregation and community engagement projects which will improve local waste disposal awareness and increase sustainably managed waste.  

The P4G partnership comprises three companies: Chanzi, Unilever, and AB InBev, and nonprofit organization, the AB InBev Foundation (ABIF). Chanzi is the commercial partner driving the business model, while ABIF convenes stakeholders to progress this model and monitors and evaluates the partnership. Unilever and AB InBev supply Chanzi with organic waste that is converted into animal protein.  

A distinct innovation of this partnership model is the satellite facility concept where Chanzi builds smaller facilities across multiple sites instead of operating from one decentralized location. This reduces transportation costs and encourages rapid growth.   

This partnership aligns with the food loss and waste reduction priorities of P4G country partners Kenya and South Africa. Through acceleration, P4G will help the partnership refine its business model to become financially sustainable. P4G will also connect the partnership with National Platforms in its partner countries to share regulatory interventions that could help with scaling. 

During the P4G funding period, Building Circular Food Systems estimates that it can reduce almost 5,000 metric tons of food waste and avoid 18,500 metric tons of carbon emissions.