Food Waste: The Ugly Truth and Delicious Solutions!

A group of HKUST students participated in an eye-opening talk addressing Hong Kong’s pressing food waste problem. The session featured Ms. Fioni Fong, the Co-Founder of Not Only Powder, a pioneering social enterprise that transforms surplus produce into nutritious powder to combat food waste.

With Hong Kong landfills receiving over 3,300 tonnes of food waste daily—nearly one-third of the city’s municipal solid waste—Ms. Fong’s talk shed light on the environmental, economic, and social consequences of this unsustainable cycle. She explored how Not Only Powder rescues ‘ugly’ or excess fruits and vegetables that would otherwise be discarded, creatively upcycling them into valuable products like smoothie powders and baking ingredients. The talk ended with a tasting session where students tried the products made from “imperfect” produce, discovering how ‘ugly’ food can be both delicious and impactful.

This talk inspired students to value the importance of responsible consumption and consider how innovative sustainability models can turn waste into opportunities.