Dr. Catherine W. Kilelu
On 9 December 2025, the VALORISE project concluded a three‑year journey exploring an often-overlooked question in Kenya’s booming dairy sector: what if whey was not a waste, but a resource? The closing and research exchange workshop was held at the Centre of Excellence for Livestock, Innovation and Business (CoELIB) in Egerton University.
In a country where milk is central to both livelihoods and nutrition, vast quantities of whey still flow out of processors as low‑value by‑products or effluent. VALORISE set out to understand how this could change, and what a more circular, bio‑based future for dairy might look like in the Kenyan context.
Implemented by a consortium bringing together Kenyan and international expertise—African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS), Roskilde University, Egerton University, the Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT, the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), and Arla Food Ingredients/PROMACO– with support from DANIDA DFC. The project ran from 2022 to 2025 with three core objectives:
- To produce an integrated and comprehensive understanding of circular bioeconomy potential and dynamics in LMICs, with a focus on milk processing.
- To create a robust foundation of bioeconomic knowledge on which Kenyan dairy‑industry stakeholders can act in applying bio-circular principles for sustainable growth.
- To increase the capacity to conduct research on circular bioeconomy (CBE) in LMICs.
These objectives were realised fully through:
- Co‑creating Evidence with Stakeholders– A cornerstone of the project was close engagement with Kenyan dairy stakeholders to generate the evidence related to opportunities and challenges of whey valorisation in the industry. This resulted in various research and policy outputs covering various knowledge bases including mapping trends in dairy processing, life cycle assessment of whey, assessment of economic, environmental, and social implications of various valorisation pathways, quality assessment of current whey and product development options. 8 peer reviewed papers are in various stages of publication and will be shared widely.
- Building Scenarios and Visions for Circularity of Whey in the Dairy Industry- A distinctive achievement of the project was the use of scenario building and visioning exercises with industry stakeholders that asked what kinds of circular futures are possible for whey valorisation in Kenya’s dairy sector—and what needs to change to get there.
- Strengthening Research Capacity on Circular Bioeconomy- The partnership was realised through joint field research and co-authorship, methodology and process co-learning including systems thinking, scenario building, stakeholder engagement, technical assessments and policy engagement. Two master’s students were supported through the project and have successfully completed their studies building a new cohort of researchers in the field of circular bioeconomy.
This capacity building is not just about individuals acquiring skills. It has also contributed to the emergence of institutional networks that can carry the circular bioeconomy agenda forward in Kenya and beyond, spanning policy research, academic training, and private sector collaboration.
Key Lessons for Circular Bioeconomy in LMIC Dairy Sectors
Several cross‑cutting lessons emerged from the VALORISE experience that are relevant not only for Kenya, but for other LMIC dairy sectors thinking about whey and circularity:
Technology is necessary but not sufficient. The feasibility of whey valorisation depends as much on governance, finance, and market development as on the availability of processing equipment.
Context matters. Circular solutions must be tailored to the scale, infrastructure, and business models of local processors, rather than copying high‑income country models.
Stakeholder engagement is essential. Co‑creating visions with processors, farmers, regulators, and other actors increases ownership, realism, and the chances that knowledge will be translated into action.
Policy and regulation can unlock or block circularity. Environmental rules, standards, and incentives need to be aligned so that reducing waste and creating value from residues becomes attractive rather than burdensome.
Circular bioeconomy is a journey. Moving from waste to resource is a process that benefits from learning‑by‑doing, pilots, and iterative adjustment, rather than one‑off projects.
Looking Ahead: From Vision to Implementation
As the VALORISE project closes, the question shifts from “what is possible?” to “what happens next?”. The project has contributed a clearer picture of the technical, economic, and institutional opportunities for whey valorisation, and has helped to articulate plausible futures for circular dairy systems in Kenya. Realising these futures will require:
- Continued collaboration between processors, cooperatives, and other industry stakeholders, researchers, and policymakers.
- Targeted investments in demonstration projects and scalable business models.
- Policy instruments that reward reduction of waste, efficient resource use, and innovation.
- Ongoing capacity building to ensure that Kenyan institutions remain at the forefront of circular bioeconomy research and practice.
We closed the project with a tree‑planting ceremony at Egerton University that symbolised roots growing into future collaboration, the VALORISE legacy points to sustained South‑North partnerships for dairy sector transformation. The story of whey in Kenya’s dairy sector is still ongoing. VALORISE has provided the evidence base to show that whey which is mainly discarded as waste can be a cornerstone of a more circular, resilient, and sustainable Kenyan dairy industry. Another key outcome from the project is an understanding of how circular economy provides immense opportunities as part of the broader food systems transformation in Kenya and in other countries in the region.
For further reflections on the achievements and lessons from the project please read the detailed blog on the project website- https://valorise.acts-net.org and check out the outputs and other information about the project.