Upcycled Innovation Gains Momentum

Expo West showcases new products, ingredients and growth across upcycled food

Upcycled products — Credit: vektorjunkie / Getty Images

It was a great week at Expo West 2026 with a large showing of Upcycled Food Association (UFA) members exhibiting and walking the show:

waste, the first RTD canned, low-alcohol upcycled beverage, launching in select stores across California this April
Daily Crunch (an Inc. “2026 Female Founders 500” company) features upcycled cherries in its Cherry Berry sprouted-nut snack mix
Blue Stripes upcycled Superfruit Gummies feature an amazing two ingredient list: upcycled cacao fruit and fruit
Farmer Bob’s date-fused Beyond Berries, featuring upcycled blueberries and/or raspberries
Uglies Kettle Chips with two new upcycled sweet potato flavors: Spicy BBQ and Hot Honey
Seven Sundays debuted new PB Puffs in Chocolate and Chocolate Peanut Butter made with upcycled oat protein and upcycled Non-GMO corn

New UFA member UPP is transforming crop side streams into a range of exciting protein and fiber ingredients, while UFA member Alvinesa continues to lead the way in transparency, producing high-value nutraceuticals from grape and olive byproducts.

Blue Stripes upcycled Superfruit Gummies — *Courtesy of Blue Stripes*

This June will mark both our third Upcycled Food Month, as well as our Foundation’s third global virtual Scientific Research Symposium III, gathering perspectives from across disciplines to share the latest upcycled qualitative and quantitative research. UFA will also have an exciting announcement soon about global growth (hint: Canada!) and later this year mobilizing member intelligence about sourcing.

Upcycled product development continues to gain momentum. Global growth projections are stronger than ever, with total market size rising to $2.47B by 2036 at 10.4% CAGR (Future Market Insights Inc., January 2026). With snacks and pet products continuing to be leading growth categories for upcycled food, it is energizing to see new application possibilities proving feasible with potential for widescale impact across categories. One highlight is the recent work of UFA member GTF Technologies alongside AB InBev producing the world’s first plastic pallet and shrink wrap made from brewers spent grain (BSG). There are also significant advancements making progress with AI which will help propel the movement in the coming months to be announced.