The Upcycled Food Association, and its affiliated 501(c)(3), The Upcycled Food Foundation, announced today that Angie Crone, UFA’s Head of Programs and Member Services, will become CEO of both organizations. Turner Wyatt, UFA’s Co-founder and current CEO, will transition to Strategic Advisor, as the non-profit marks an important milestone and matures from a start-up business into its next phase of growth. Angie, who joined the UFA leadership team this past February, brings a wealth of food industry experience and knowledge of third-party certification to the role, having worked with several high-growth national brands including food-waste retailer Imperfect Foods, as well as previously serving as the Head of Consumer Packaged Goods at Fair Trade USA.
Angie had this to say about her new appointment, “I am thrilled and honored to be stepping in as Interim CEO of UFA during this integral next chapter. Joining UFA was one of the most impactful ways for me to act on climate change and, because of my familiarity with our values and operations, I am ready to get to work to meet the changing demands we face today. I look forward to continuing work with our impressive membership to realize their sustainability goals and accelerate the demand for upcycled foods worldwide.”
UFA’s Board President, Caroline Cotto, shared these sentiments,”Over the last three years, the Upcycled Food Association has focused on building a strong foundation for the organization and putting upcycled food on the map. Now, it’s time to accelerate our growth, and we can’t think of a better person to lead this charge than the UFA’s own, Angie Crone.”
Turner Wyatt had this to say about UFA’s future and new CEO, “Angie is one of the most professional leaders I have ever met. She is deeply invested in the upcycled movement, beloved by the team, respected by our members, and is hungry to accomplish the organization’s goals. I could not be more proud of her for this promotion to the role as CEO, and look forward to watching her and UFA soar in the years to come.” After more than 10 years of leading four award-winning sustainable food organizations, Turner Wyatt is sentimentally departing UFA to start farming with his partner in Colorado.
Since launching in 2019, the Upcycled Food Association has welcomed more than 246 members and certified 252 products and ingredients through its flagship program, Upcycled Certified™. Sales of Upcycled Certified™ products grew by 1,046 percent in Q1 2022 over Q1 2021 in the natural products channel (SPINS data), which have collectively diverted nearly 1 billion pounds of food waste from landfills this year. In addition, Whole Foods included upcycling in its list of top food trends between 2021 and 2023, and Food Tank, Kroger, and Forbes all identified upcycling as a top 10 food trend in 2021 and 2022. Investments in food waste solutions grew 30% in 2021 compared to 2020.
“The food business community needs UFA’s leadership more than ever to forge a frictionless path to make upcycled products a staple on grocery shelves and menus everywhere, so I’m really proud of Turner for this ‘passing of the baton,’ and the new energy and vision Angie will provide. To me, this also marks an important moment for food funders and impact investors who may not have considered this space yet, to meet the moment on food waste reduction and climate action alongside UFA and engage with us in this next chapter,” highlighted Eva Goulbourne, President, Upcycled Food Foundation.