An Austrian food-tech company is turning discarded stone fruit pits into valuable plant-based ingredients, helping reduce food waste, lower emissions and build a more circular food system.
Every year, millions of tonnes of apricot, plum, cherry and peach pits are discarded after fruit processing. While the fruit itself is used in juices, jams and preserves, the pits are typically treated as waste and sent for disposal.
But hidden inside these hard shells lies an overlooked resource: nutrient-rich kernels packed with oils, proteins and functional ingredients. Recognising this untapped potential, Austrian food-tech company Kern Tec has developed a way to transform stone fruit by-products into sustainable ingredients for the food industry, creating value from a waste stream that has long been ignored.
Turning a waste problem into a food innovation opportunity
Fruit processors have never had a shortage of pits. What they've lacked is a way to do anything with them. Inside every apricot, plum or cherry stone sits a kernel loaded with oil and protein. It also carries naturally occurring cyanogenic compounds that have to be removed before the kernel is safe to eat. That extra step is exactly why this resource sat untouched for so long: nobody had built the technology to do it at industrial scale.
It's a small case study of a much bigger problem. The European Commission has flagged food waste prevention and the shift to a circular economy as priorities for building a food system that holds up long-term. Kern Tec's answer was to build the processing technology that turns a discarded by-product into a safe, high-value ingredient. This proves that the biggest waste problems in food often aren't at the consumer's plate, but buried earlier in the supply chain.
From overlooked to in-demand
Kern Tec has rapidly expanded its portfolio of upcycled ingredients, which are now being used in plant-based dairy alternatives, confectionery products, spreads and specialty oils.
The company has demonstrated strong commercial momentum through partnerships with established food manufacturers. In 2025, Kern Tec partnered with Swiss chocolate producer Stella to launch a vegan chocolate made with upcycled apricot kernels, showcasing how circular ingredients can successfully enter mainstream food markets.
Its innovation has also attracted significant industry recognition. Kern Tec received an award for its apricot kernel butter at the prestigious Anuga Taste Innovation Show and has become a leading example of how agricultural by-products can be transformed into commercially viable food ingredients.
Investor confidence has followed. To support its next stage of growth, Kern Tec secured €12 million in Series A funding led by Telos Impact, with participation from PeakBridge and the European Innovation Council Fund. The investment is helping the company expand production capacity and accelerate market adoption across Europe and beyond.
Delivering environmental and economic impact
Kern Tec's environmental impact is rooted in its ability to unlock value from an existing waste stream. Life cycle assessments indicate that the company's upcycled kernel ingredients use up to 95% less water and generate approximately 50% lower CO₂ emissions than conventional nut ingredients. Because the kernels originate from existing fruit-processing by-products, no additional agricultural land is required.
This approach demonstrates how circular economy principles can be applied within the food industry to reduce environmental impact while creating economic value.
For fruit processors, what was once a costly disposal challenge becomes a new revenue-generating resource. For food manufacturers, Kern Tec provides a sustainable ingredient alternative with a significantly lower environmental footprint. And for consumers, it offers innovative products that support a more resource-efficient food system.
Perhaps most importantly, Kern Tec's solution integrates seamlessly into existing supply chains. Rather than requiring major changes in farming practices or consumer behaviour, it leverages infrastructure that already exists, making large-scale adoption both practical and commercially attractive.
Accelerating growth through EIT Food
Kern Tec's rise wasn't a solo effort. The company was selected as an EIT Food Rising Food Stars in both 2022 and 2023, gaining access to mentoring, strategic guidance, industry connections and visibility across Europe's agrifood innovation ecosystem.
In 2024, Kern Tec's achievements were further recognised when it won the EIT Food Marketed Innovation Prize in the category of Best Food Waste Reduction Solution. The award highlighted the company's success in translating circular economy principles into a scalable, market-ready business.
EIT Food's support helped Kern Tec strengthen its commercial strategy, validate its environmental impact and build partnerships across the food value chain. This support played an important role in accelerating the company's journey from promising startup to recognised leader in sustainable food innovation.
EIT helped Kern Tec most in connecting us with the lead investor Telos Impact from our Series A, through one of the flagship events in Lisbon.
Luca Fichtinger, Founder at Kern Tec
What's next
Kern Tec's roadmap now is about scale: more production capacity, deeper partnerships with manufacturers, and its kernels showing up in more products across more markets. Regulatory pressure on food waste and emissions is only building, and consumer appetite for sustainable ingredients is rising with it. These factors could take Kern Tec from niche upcycler to industry standard.
The company has already proven the concept works. The next test is whether it can scale fast enough to matter.
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