Raising the Circle

In this bonus episode, Bram Kerkhof, Head of Product at REDUCED, joined for a lighthearted round of the We’re Not Really Strangers card game to close out the interview. We dove into what a perfect day looks like when food, nature, and community come together, advice we’d give our younger selves, and the reminder to keep our bodies moving with long runs and dance classes.*⁠We're Not Really Strangers⁠ is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections.~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#CircularFood #FoodInnovation #UpcyclingFoodWaste #Fermentation #CircularEconomy* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

In this episode, we sit down with Bram Kerkhof, Head of Product at REDUCED, the Copenhagen food-tech turning industry side streams into clean-label, umami-rich flavor concentrates. Bram bridges his chef craft and food science to show how koji fermentation and enzymatic hydrolysis can transform “leftovers” into premium taste while also cutting emissions.From chicken wing tips and broken rice to apple cores, vegetable trimmings, and even invasive shore crabs, REDUCED’s “waste-to-taste” platform proves sustainability can (and must) taste incredible.Together we dive into three big themes:From side stream to flavourful ingredient – how REDUCED upcycles by-products (e.g., chicken carcasses, apple cores, leek offcuts, shore crabs) into clean-label flavor bases and why *taste* has to lead for circular foods to win (if the taste is good, so is the adoption)Fermentation as green tech – the duo of koji fermentation and enzymes for lower-energy bioprocessing, concentrated umami, and consistent quality at scale (including the messy learnings of sourcing, shelf life, and scale-up hiccups.Scaling impact in the real world – moving from consumer branding to B2B, navigating novel-food rules and category gatekeepers, tracking emissions, and opening global doors after being named Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Company” of 2025 If you’ve ever wondered how surplus mushrooms or chicken trimmings can skip the landfill and end up on your plate in the tastiest way possible, then this episode is for you.#CircularFood #FoodInnovation #UpcyclingFoodWaste #Fermentation #CircularEconomyWatch Raising the Circle on ⁠YouTube⁠ or listen on all podcast apps like ⁠Spotify⁠. ~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

In this bonus episode, Amie N’Dong, co-founder of Truely and Social Vanilla, joined for a round of the We’re Not Really Strangers card game to close out our conversation.We talked about plant care (or lack thereof), the podcasts and publications that keep Amie connected to global issues, and the importance of broadening our perspectives beyond the Global North. Plus, Amie mentions a sweet tip on where to find the best Danish strawberry cake, made with her very own vanilla. 🎂 📰 Read that article by Verdens Bedste Nyheder.*⁠We're Not Really Strangers⁠ is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections.~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#SupplyChain #FairTrade #CircularEconomy #Agroforestry #FoodSystems #ImpactEntrepreneurship * Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

In this episode, we meet Amie N’Dong, co-founder of Social Vanilla and Truely, two purpose-led food ventures creating a more transparent and responsible relationship to farmers when sourcing ingredients. Amie takes us inside vanilla, nuts, coffee, and olive oil value chains, where price and power imbalance often stacks up against smallholder farmers, and shows how bottom-up pricing, farmer-owned certifications, and open data can flip the script. Together we dive into three big themes:Farmer power & transparent value chains – how farmer-owned certifications and data, fair (not just market) pricing, and cooperative structures shift leverage from buyers to growersAgroforestry & resilience in practice – intercropping vanilla, cacao, coffee, and spices to increase yields, protect soil and biodiversity, and buffer farmers against climate and price shocksScaling impact without selling out – the real-world choices behind sourcing, processing, packaging, and supermarket pricing and how storytelling and consumer education are essential to change the systemThis conversation is a guide to what “fair from farm to fork” actually looks like and is a reminder that *you* vote with every purchase.Watch Raising the Circle on ⁠YouTube⁠ or listen on all podcast apps like ⁠Spotify⁠. ~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#SupplyChain #FairTrade #CircularEconomy #Agroforestry #FoodSystems #ImpactEntrepreneurship * Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe. :)

Robert Dichtl, CEO and co-founder of ⁠⁠Kleen Hub⁠⁠, joined for an open and honest round of the We’re Not Really Strangers card game for a playful and revealing way to end our chat.We talked about what it *really* means to answer “How are you?” truthfully, the double-edged nature of positivity in leadership, and the personal growth he experienced through Copenhagen Business School’s “Founder to Leader” program. This conversation opens up a rarely heard side of entrepreneurship, one that moves beyond KPIs and growth to explore emotional awareness, boundaries, and the need for community as a founder. *⁠We're Not Really Strangers⁠ is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections.~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#CircularEconomy #ReusablePackaging #Innovation #TechForGood #Entrepreneurship* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

In this episode of Raising the Circle, we meet Robert Dichtl, CEO & co-founder of Kleen Hub - Tap & Reuse™: a return system that works without an app or deposit. How does it work? Borrow a cup or container, tap your card, and drop it back when you’re done. From supermarkets in the UK to airports in Norway and pilots like Brussels Airport, KleenHub is quietly replacing single-use with a system designed for speed, simplicity, and scale.We discuss Robert’s path from e-waste research to reuse tech, the hard pivots that killed their original app, and the insight that convenience wins and the learning that when you make reuse as easy as trashing your cup, people switch.Together we dive into three big themes:From product to platform – why KleenHub ditched deposits and apps for an RFID “Tap & Reuse™” system, the Magic Counter that reads multiple items at once, and white-label tech any brand can useDesigning for real-world scale – lessons from Copenhagen cafés to Brazilian stadiums, why “network effects” were overrated, why closed loops (universities, offices, venues) outperform street cafes, and how frictionless returns unlock adoptionData, guts, and leadership – pairing usage data with intuition, surviving near-miss fundraising moments, hiring a seasoned CTO to level up the stack, and a call to leaders to use their decision making powerThis is a story about replacing throwaway culture with tap-and-go circularity and how smart design can make the sustainable choice more convenient. Watch Raising the Circle on ⁠YouTube⁠ or listen all podcast streaming apps like ⁠Spotify⁠. ~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#CircularEconomy #ReusablePackaging #Innovation #TechForGood #Entrepreneurship* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

Sophia from ⁠@SofiaCitron⁠ joined us for a cozy and curious chat with the We’re Not Really Strangers card game, shared over her homemade vanilla pudding with rose water and strawberries. Lucky us! 🍓We talked about our fathers, childhood desserts and how they’ve evolved into creative plant-based versions, and the joy of cooking and dreaming with her brother in their project @Cicrone.*⁠We're Not Really Strangers⁠ is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections.~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#FoodAsActivism #RegenerativeFarming #CircularEconomy #SustainableLiving * Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: ⁠[email protected]⁠ If you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

In this episode of Raising the Circle, we speak with Sophia from @SofiaCitron – a plant-based chef, holistic nutritionist, and researcher whose work spans workshops on sustainable food systems, biodiversity, and regenerative agriculture, to community events that put those ideas into practice.With training in Integrated Food Studies, ethnobotany, and holistic nutrition, her approach blends science and food to explore the deep connection between what we eat, how we live, and the stories we tell through food.Together we dive into three big themes:Food as everyday activism – choosing plant-based, seasonal, and locally grown ingredients, supporting regenerative farmers, and being ethical (even when budgets are tight).Regenerative food systems & biodiversity – why soil is “the skin of our planet,” monocultures vs. mixed crops, sensory workshops that reconnect people to flavor and variety, and practical ways to start local.Food & women’s health – living (and cooking) with cyclical bodies, nourishment before, during, and after menstruation, herbs and whole foods that can support hormones.This episode invites us to see eating not just as consumption, but as participation in a living system.Watch Raising the Circle on ⁠YouTube⁠ or listen on all podcast apps like ⁠Spotify⁠. ~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#FoodAsActivism #RegenerativeFarming #CircularEconomy #SustainableLiving * Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.Have questions or feedback? Say hi: [email protected] you enjoyed this, please rate, review, and subscribe.

Leif Friedmann from ⁠Eat Wasted⁠⁠ joined me for a reflective chat inspired by the We’re Not Really Strangers card game, a playful and informal way to end our conversation.From wild oyster foraging on the Danish west coast to the simple magic of shared meals, we explore what it means to connect over food and why sitting around a table might just be one of the oldest (and most important) rituals we have left.Leif shares his happiest memory of 2025 and what he craves most: more moments of gathering, cooking, and being simply human together.*⁠We're Not Really Strangers⁠ is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections.~~~🎙️Created and hosted by ⁠Solveiga Jur⁠ 📸Photography magic by ⁠Ingmar Bötker⁠🎬Video editing by the versatile ⁠Sandra Linne⁠~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#FoodWasteSolutions #CircularEconomy #SustainableFood #CommunityBuilding #ImpactEntrepreneurship* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on⁠ ⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠ or⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠⁠.

In this episode of Raising the Circle, we meet Leif Friedmann, the curious co-founder of Eat Wasted, a Copenhagen-based startup turning surplus bread into pasta, and sparking a global movement to fight food waste by feeding people food waste.What began with a small pasta machine in a basement has grown into partnerships with bakeries, donations of over 10,000 meals to food-insecure communities, and recognition from some of the world’s most celebrated chefs.Together we dive into three big themes:Transforming food waste into opportunity – how bread, the world’s most wasted food, can be reimagined into delicious pasta with real social impact.Community and creativity as the engine – from grassroots dinners in Copenhagen to collaborations with soup kitchens, neighbors, and world-class restaurants.The future of food systems – how values-driven businesses, bold imagination, and collective action can change the way we eat, produce, and share food.This is a story about carbs, creativity, and community and a glimpse into how food can fuel movements.Watch Raising the Circle on YouTube or listen on your podcast apps like Spotify. ~~~🎙️Created and hosted by Solveiga Jur 📸Photography magic by Ingmar Bötker🎬Video editing by the versatile Sandra Linne~~~Tune in and raise the bar on business standards in order to Raise the Circle. ♻️#FoodWasteSolutions #CircularEconomy #SustainableFood #CommunityBuilding #ImpactEntrepreneurship* Follow Raising the Circle's journey on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ or ⁠Instagram⁠.