Eating your crusts is said to be good for you.
But if you are one of those people who prefer to leave them at the side of the plate, all is not lost.
Researchers have shown that leftover crusts can be fermented to make a lab-based protein to be used in the likes of pork pies and sausages.
The development could help reduce the extraordinary amount of waste that comes from bakeries around the world.
Currently, around 10 per cent of the 185million tons of baked bread each year is wasted, mostly at supermarkets and commercial bakers.
While most of this surplus is safe to eat, with some of it distributed by charities, it cannot be sold more generally.
Now, scientists at Aberystwyth University have shown that fermenting surplus bread with juice from pressed grass – which is full of nutrients – can create alternative proteins.
These proteins could eventually end up on the plates of millions of people, they said, including in fortified bread, pork pies or sausages.
Dr David Bryant, one of the study’s authors, said: ‘This is a real breakthrough that will hopefully tackle the growing global problem of wasted food.
‘Most of us know only too well how much of a problem bread waste is – from the toast thrown away at breakfast or our uneaten sandwiches.
‘But that is not the whole issue – much is wasted commercially in manufacture and retail as well.
‘This research gives us a way of tackling that problem through fermentation. It is the use of grass that makes these findings a genuine first.
‘The beauty of this method is that it can use that everyday plant to turn waste into new types of food for the growing world population.’
The fermentation process is kickstarted by fungi, which break down molecules into smaller, more absorbable forms.
The type of fungi used in the scientists’ new fermentation is already widely used to produce tempeh, a vegetarian alternative to meat made from fermented cooked soya beans and which is widely eaten in parts of Asia.
The team said their breakthrough takes advantage of solid-state fermentation, which is more environmentally friendly and produces less wastewater than other methods.
The four-year research project is funded by the UKRI Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).
Professor Anne Ferguson-Smith, BBSRC executive chairman, said: ‘Embracing innovative approaches like this not only helps to combat food waste but also pioneers new ways to sustain our growing population with nutritious alternatives.
‘This latest research epitomises the type of transformative science BBSRC invests in to foster sustainable and resilient food systems across the UK and around the world.
‘The potential of turning everyday waste into valuable food resources is an opportunity we must capitalise on if we are to successfully secure our global food supply both now and in the future.’
As the study continues, researchers will consider how they can change the flavours and improve the taste of the alternative proteins produced by the fermentation.
Their findings were published in the journal NPJ Science of Food.
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