Circularity in Production Processes
Reusing water, making optimal use of the potato
Healthy Earth
At Aviko, we work every day to improve the circularity of our production processes. By reusing water as much as possible and making optimal use of the potato, we translate our sustainability ambitions into concrete actions in practice.
Maximum value, minimal waste
Minimising (food) waste is an important focus within our production processes. During the production of fries and other potato products, residual streams are generated which, wherever possible, are given a new purpose. Together with Duynie, a sister company within Cosun, these residual streams are used for high‑value applications. For example, starch is recovered from process water and processed into raw materials for, among others, packaging materials, adhesives and construction products. Cutting residues are processed as much as possible into specialty products or, when this is not feasible, used as high‑quality animal feed.
Together with Cosun, we work towards maximising the valorisation of the potato and minimising food waste. The most important step to achieve the 50% reduction in food waste by 2030 is to upgrade the starch from process water as much as possible. The successful pilot in Steenderen represents a promising step in this direction.
Water reuse in our factories
In 2025, in collaboration with Wafilin Systems and Waterstromen, we successfully carried out a pilot project to maximise the reuse of process water at our production site in Steenderen. Using smart technologies such as membrane filtration and separation techniques, residual water is upgraded into safe process water. Gijs Olde Loohuis, Process Technologist at Waterstromen, emphasises the importance of water reuse: “In this project, Aviko, Wafilin and Waterstromen combine their technological expertise to develop innovative solutions that are also truly feasible in practice.”
The pilot in Steenderen helps determine the optimal configuration of technologies. Bas Bremer, Process Technologist at Aviko, explains: “We are not only looking at water reuse, but also at the circular use of nutrients. In this way, we reduce food waste and make optimal use of our resources.”
We are also making progress at other locations. In Poperinge (Belgium), a larger water reuse installation was commissioned in 2025, enabling approximately three times more water to be reused compared to the original installation. At Aviko’s factory in Rain (Germany), water reuse has been applied to potato transport water, resulting in additional water savings within the logistics process.
“Samen met Cosun werken we aan een zo hoog mogelijke verwaarding van de aardappel en zo min mogelijk voedselverspilling.”
In den kommenden Jahren sind weitere Maßnahmen sowie die Skalierung des Pilotprojekts erforderlich, um unsere Ziele für 2030 zu erreichen: eine Reduktion des Wasserverbrauchs um 30 % und eine Verringerung der Lebensmittelverschwendung um 50 %.
Concrete steps towards zero waste
Within our own operations, we are also taking steps to reduce waste. Together with waste management partners, we aim to separate operational waste streams more effectively so they can be reused as new raw materials. Apart from certain limitations due to local legislation (including China and Poland), we achieved our zero waste to landfill target in 2025. For 2030, we have defined a new ambition: 50% waste with energy recovery to resource recovery.
A strong practical example comes from our site in Proven (Belgium), where a significant improvement was implemented in 2025 by separating foliage and stones during the collection and processing of potatoes. This separation of streams resulted in an 80% reduction in residual waste. In addition, plastic foil is collected separately in compressed bales at the Proven site. Following a successful pilot with a local waste processor – during which old waste presses were refurbished and brought back into operation – the approach was scaled up, resulting in an almost 70% reduction in total residual waste.