The State of Circular Entrepreneurship presented to Queen Máxima at the start of the Week of the Circular Economy

The State of Circular Entrepreneurship presented to Queen Máxima

Thursday 19 March the Week of the Circular Economy kicked off with the 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗢𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 in Utrecht. An insightful plenary programme with Queen Máxima, Dutch Minister of Climate and Green Growth Stientje van Veldhoven, and 800 entrepreneurs, policymakers and investors in the room.

Route Circulair presented the second edition of the State of Circular Entrepreneurship to Queen Máxima (download the report here). Based on more than 1,000 measurements, the report clearly shows a trend: 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗶𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗱𝗹𝘆, 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗮𝗴𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱.

Minister Stientje van Veldhoven received a set of concrete business proposals which is an important first step towards the systemic change the report calls for. 𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰; 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆.

𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱: 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝘇𝘇𝗹𝗲
While the food transition was just one element of the broader programme, it remains crucial. Together with Sjoerd van Kempen (Route Circulair), Caroline Duivenvoorden (Foodvalley) hosted an Action Table on valorising side streams in food chains.

It became a session full of energy, bringing together diverse perspectives across the value chain and moving from ambition towards concrete next steps. Turning unavoidable side streams into value is not just an opportunity; it is essential for building a future‑proof food system.

We explored the case of brewers’ spent grains as an example of an unavoidable industrial side stream: rich in potential for upcycling into human food (because large volumes available and high nutritional value), yet still facing challenges related to scale, market adoption and value‑chain coordination.

It was encouraging to see how many participants, each representing different parts of the chain, shared similar insights on opportunities and conditions needed to overcome market barriers.

👉 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻?
We’ve summarised them here.

We look forward to taking these insights forward within Foodvalley’s broader Upcycling programme, and first of all within the UPcycled4FoodInitiative.

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