Citation: Rao, M. (2025) Traditional knowledge at the centre of a circular bioeconomy. Nature Food. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-025-01205-zHeader image credit: UNDP The circular bioeconomy is often presented as a frontier of cutting-edge innovation, where science, technology, and sustainability converge to create new possibilities. However, during my PhD research on food waste valorisation, I started to notice something less […]
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Written for the Good Food Movement as part of my monthly column ‘The Plate and the Planet’. Published in May 2025. Header image credit: Good Food Movement. Can a rapidly expanding industry feed a nation without compromising its ecosystems or its people’s health? Aquaculture—which involves farming fish, shellfish, and aquatic plants—has become central to this […]
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Written for the Good Food Movement as part of my monthly column ‘The Plate and the Planet’. Published in April 2025. Header image credit: Good Food Movement. India – one of the world’s largest food producers – loses an estimated 40 percent of its produce annually. This colossal waste not only squanders natural, technological, and human resources, […]
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In February 2025, I was invited to speak to the team at GreenDish, a Utrecht-based consultancy, about the future of circular food systems. GreenDish focuses on enhancing the sustainability and healthiness of food services in public institutions such as municipal offices and hospitals, as well as in private-sector settings like restaurants and hotels. Their work […]
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Published open access in Food Policy in November 2024. The research presented in this paper was supported by the EU Horizon project FUSILLI under grant agreement No. 101000717. View full text here. Title Small wins in practice: Learnings from 16 European initiatives working towards the transformation of urban food systems Abstract In this study, we […]
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In October 2024, I participated in FoodRevolution 2024 – a conference that focused on a holistic approach towards the future of food. The three day conference explored the interconnections between sustainability, safety, and health via lively panel discussions, research presentations, and lectures by renowned experts. During the session on food waste, I gave an invited […]
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Powered by Enactus Netherlands, Popping Bubbles is a podcast series that brings together academics and entrepreneurs committed to achieving sustainable development goals. Hosts Stefan and Liza chat with their guests about what it takes to achieve these goals, how the guests leading the charge in their respective fields, and students and other young people can […]
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From 16th – 18th October 2024, Wageningen Centre of Sustainability Governance organised a conference entitled ‘Governing Sustainable Transformations’. The central theme of the conference centred around the questions: Can sustainability transformation be governed? And if so by whom, what and how? As part of the thematic session ‘Evaluating Sustainable Transformations’, I presented the outcomes of […]
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On June 18 2024, Foodvalley NL published their position paper on upcycled food and ingredients. As a contributing author, I co-wrote the chapter entitled ‘The regulatory framework from a European perspective’. This collaboration allowed me to translate findings from my PhD research on food waste valorisation into actionable steps for stakeholders at the forefront of […]
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In May 2024, I participated in the second edition of the Food Law Academics’ Network conference in Bari, Italy. With sustainable agrifood chains as its central theme, the conference brought together legal scholars who work on the various aspects of food and agricultural supply chains. I had the opportunity to present my work on corporate […]
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Madhura Rao 