Food Cycle Science

Food Cycle Science is a Canadian company that offers a food waste reduction tool called “FoodCycler” to compost household food waste. A FoodCycler is a small box-like appliance that can be fitted onto a kitchen bench. The FoodCycler converts food scraps into soil via a drying, grinding, and cooling process within 4–8 hours, which can then be used in gardening or be pelletized for home heating purposes. The company claims that its food waste reprocessing technology emits zero methane gas. The company also claims that its FoodCycler is capable of converting two liters of scraps per cycle and reduces the volume and weight of food scrap by 90%.  The company is also prototyping a commercial "One-bin" system that can degrade bioplastics and transform them, along with food waste, into a soil amendment, contributing to a circular food economy.

FoodCycle Science sells FoodCyclers in North America via its partnership with Vitamix (a blender manufacturer) under the name “Vitamix FoodCycler FC-50”. Outside of North America, the company directly sells the product under the name “FC-30” via registered retailers to countries such as Chile, Sri Lanka, Costa Rica, Malaysia, and Japan.

The company partnered with the Bonfield Municipality, Canada in November 2021, to provide Bonfield households with its food waste reduction solution—the FoodCycler. The Bonfield Municipality would initially purchase 36 FoodCyclers for USD 5,400 (after receiving a discount of USD 7,200) and expects to receive the units toward the end of December 2021. The company partnered with The Municipality of Kincardine in March 2023 , to launch a food waste diversion pilot project, which would focus on providing Food Cycle Science’s FoodCycler systems to up to 180 households within the community at a subsidized rate. Later this month, the company also partnered with the Municipal Innovation Council for a food waste diversion pilot project, with the towns of Saugeen Shores and Huron-Kinloss participating in the project to test The FoodCycler. As of February 2023, the company has entered into FoodCycler food waste recycling pilot agreements with 71 municipalities across Canada. 

In January 2019, FoodCycle Science received a USD 225,000 grant from the Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario (delivers programs and services to support innovation and economic growth in Southern Ontario by providing necessary aid to companies). The new funds were expected to be allocated to develop and further commercialize its product FoodCycler.  In April 2023 the company also received CAD 1.65 million (~USD 1.2 million) in investment from the Canadian Food Innovation Network (CFIN) as part of its Food Innovation Challenge to tackle plastic waste as well in the food sector with its One-bin system.