It is an ancient Egyptian tradition to make beer out of bread through an elaborate fermentation process.
Singaporean Travinder Singh (left), who discovered this in 2018, got curious and decided to try it out in his own kitchen.
He ground up bread and fermented it, following YouTube tutorials he watched. He failed miserably.
“I got my friends to taste the beer. They hated it,” said the 32-year-old entrepreneur who has now established himself in both Singapore and Japan as a beer manufacturer of repute.
Less & Co, founded in 2019, is a sustainable-solutions provider that turns food waste into beverages.
Its arm Crust turns surplus bread from local bakeries and grocers into beer, using ingredients such as coffee grounds, apple peels, cacao husks and tea leaves as flavouring.
The company’s new arm Crop turns vegetable scraps and fruit peels into sweet drinks – an idea mooted by the grocers.
Less & Co claims to have saved over 3,000kg of food waste and reduced over 4,200kg of CO2 emissions through its sustainable model.
Mr Travinder, who proudly revealed that the company is working towards reducing 1 per cent of global food waste by 2030, said the practice of reducing wastage was instilled in him from a young age. He recalled his mother incorporating leftovers into other meals for their family of six.
“Sustainability is not just an urban trend. It is a lifestyle choice,” he said.
He did not let his initial failure stop him from developing his business idea.
Mr Travinder visited 11 beer breweries and factories in California in 2019, spending almost two months volunteering his services for free at these places and learning from the staff.
After formulating his own bread-to-beer process, he started Crust but struggled with gaining the trust of bars and restaurants to move away from their tried-and-tested alcohol products.
“There was the misconception that we use expired products or food waste that had been partially consumed. Many had concerns about the hygiene and quality of our products,” said Mr Travinder.
Less & Co had a breakthrough during the pandemic as sustainability gained traction, fulfilling about 20 orders a day.
Mr Travinder pointed out that alternative options are needed to encourage sustainable consumption habits and although the local upcycling industry is growing, food upcycling remains rather untapped.
The entrepreneur who is listed on 50 Next, which recognises young game-changers in gastronomy across the globe, broke into the Japanese market in 2021.
Less & Co is currently working on customising the flavours of the beverages to suit the Japanese palate.
The company has also developed its own Sustainable Unique Label to act as a research-and-development platform for food service and retail businesses.
