Transforming Agricultural Loss into Value: Purelution's Vision for a Future Where Nothing and No One is Wasted
Technology that turns 'wastefulness' into 'gratitude': A revolution in food value creation starting with non-standard strawberries
Urelio Editorial Team
The 'Imperfect Strawberries' Purée Sampled at the Expo Site
From June 8 to 15, 2025, in the Expo Messe Wasse Event Hall on the south side of EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai Expo, the event "RELAY THE FOOD ~Connecting Food and Culture to the Future~" was held. During the eight-day exhibition, a special tasting event took place from June 10 to 12, allowing visitors to taste the products firsthand.
The star was the ethical purée made from non-standard strawberries called 'Imperfect Strawberries.' With a single sip, the rich strawberry flavor spreads throughout the mouth. However, this purée is not just a delicious beverage; it embodies a story of serious challenges faced by Japanese agriculture and the innovative technologies that solve them.
The 'Purelution' Project: Transforming Agricultural Loss into Value
This ethical purée showcased at the Expo is a product of the 'Purelution' project, jointly pursued by Noritake Co., Ltd. and Kukulcan Corporation.
The project aims to transform the entire food circulation system, from producers to food businesses. Specifically, by combining yield and quality forecasts with processing technologies, the project has established a system to turn non-standard agricultural products that were previously discarded into sources of revenue. The mission of the project is to 'Transform cultivation in the fields into new life and deliver it to the market, creating a valuable cycle through AI and plant double technology.'
The 'Imperfect Strawberries' used for the Expo's ethical purée are cultivated in Saga Prefecture. Farmers cultivate juicy, delicious strawberries every morning, reading the wind and touching the soil with care. They overcome difficulties like typhoons and bad weather, striving to deliver the safe and reliable 'Ichigo-san' strawberries. This variety is known for its delicate, sweet flavor and is a source of pride for the farmers.
However, while many sweet and fragrant strawberries are produced, those with slightly irregular shapes cannot be sold at the market and are returned to the soil. Despite having the same taste and nutritional value as standard products, they are not valued due to their appearance. Farmers feel the frustration of 'having grown them but unable to deliver them.' The exact amount discarded is unknown, as farmers are too busy with harvesting work to record discards accurately.
By combining AI production forecasting technology with purée processing technology, 'Purelution' transforms these non-standard strawberries into an ethical purée with new value.
The Serious Challenges Facing Japanese Agriculture and the 'We Discard Nothing' Philosophy
Behind the sweet purée tasted at the Expo lies the harsh reality faced by Japanese agriculture.
In Japan, 2 million tons of vegetables are discarded annually in the fields. This is part of the total 7 million tons of food loss, translating to 52 kg of food wasted per person per year. Moreover, this hidden discard carries hidden costs: each person bears a handling fee of 17,000 yen annually, and it generates a CO2 emission of 2 million tons, adding environmental burdens.
This issue stems from agricultural products that cannot be marketed due to appearance or size. While unfamiliar to many consumers, it presents a severe problem in the agricultural field. There are four deep-rooted issues in field food loss: first, the reality that product value is judged based on appearance for non-standard vegetables. Second, economic considerations make transport and selection costs prohibitively high, forcing shipment abandonment. Third, unpredictable weather due to climate change complicates planning. Finally, a serious labor shortage during the harvest makes collecting the grown produce challenging.
Kukulcan's belief to 'achieve a world where nothing is discarded, and no one is abandoned through the power of technology' directly confronts these circumstances. The phrase 'We discard nothing' embodies the creation of value in everything and the realization of a circular society devoid of the concept of waste. The Purelution project in collaboration with Noritake is one of the efforts manifesting this philosophy.
The Ethical Purée Birthed from a Collaboration of Technologies
The achievement of this ethical purée is due to the collaboration of technologies from Kukulcan and Noritake.
Kukulcan has developed AI technology that enables the yield and quality of agricultural products to be known as effortlessly as weather forecasts through simple photography. By merely taking photos with an AI-equipped camera, the state of agricultural products is recognized, greatly reducing management labor. It is a simple system that minimizes the operational burden on-site.
This system allows for preemptive identification of surplus strawberries from farmer communications and timely collection. This shifts the perspective from 'process because it’s surplus' to 'utilize before it becomes surplus.' In just one district in Saga Prefecture, about 1 ton of non-standard strawberries is collected annually. For farmers troubled by waste, this arrangement provides a new income source.
Noritake, on the other hand, boasts a high-performance processing device known as the 'Noritake Cooker.' This device's technology has notable features; typically, purées have a shelf life of about 2 to 3 days, but with unique high-temperature sterilization technology, they can be stored for about a year at room temperature. With advanced short-time sterilization technology, it produces flavorful and pure purées, achieving unique versatility in the industry.
Harvested agricultural products are promptly transported to the factory and processed while maintaining freshness. This logistics system is also a crucial element in achieving fresh and pure purées. Fruits previously discarded as non-standard or surplus can now be used in various forms like sweets, sauces, and drinks.
By combining these two technologies, a valuable recycling system has emerged. AI forecasts non-standard agricultural products, which are then transformed into new value without waste through processing technology. The fusion of both companies' technologies has realized an integrated flow from zero waste to value creation, which is the core of Purelution.
‘Not a single drop of the nurtured fruit's blessings is wasted’ and ‘giving the received fruit's blessings a next form.’ The technologies and intentions of Kukulcan and Noritake embody the Purelution project's philosophy.
The Future of the Circular Society Painted by Technology
The technology established in the Purelution project has applicability beyond strawberries. It can be expanded to vegetables and fruits in general, with optimization tailored to each type, offering the potential for wider food loss reduction. Even for crops that cannot be marketed due to standards, there are no issues with taste or quality. Working together with farmers, crops that have been overlooked until now can be moved to the next stage.
The project aims to build a circular system that transforms waste into value-added products. Farmers can earn income from non-standard agricultural products, processors can secure stable raw materials, and consumers can obtain products with new value. It is designed for a win-win scenario for all parties involved.
On the global stage of the Expo, efforts to eliminate vegetable and fruit loss that could not enter the market were introduced through this technology. It served as a venue to promote consumer awareness changes towards 'choosing ethical products that retain nutrition and taste.' The endeavor that began in Saga's fields gained an opportunity to broadcast its message to the world.
The roadmap to social implementation is also laid out concretely. It proposes new value for non-standard agricultural products and realizes a sustainable agricultural system. Simultaneously, the reduction of food waste achieves environmental load reduction. Through the combination of technology and passion, a path toward a future with zero food waste in fields is becoming clear.
The ethical purée from 'Imperfect Strawberries' displayed at the Expo represents more than just a delicious drink. It demonstrates the potential to solve social issues through technology and create new value from what was previously deemed valueless. The new value born from agricultural loss has the power to change the future of food.