Reducing Food Waste: Jack Bouroudjian Of Global Smart Commodity Group On How They Are Helping To Eliminate Food Waste
An Interview With Martita Mestey
‘Be ready to deviate off course if necessary.’ Covid led us make certain decisions which were unforeseen.
It has been estimated that each year, more than 100 billion pounds of food is wasted in the United States. That equates to more than $160 billion worth of food thrown away each year. At the same time, in many parts of the United States, there is a crisis caused by people having limited access to healthy & affordable food options. The waste of food is not only a waste of money and bad for the environment, but it is also making vulnerable populations even more vulnerable.
Authority Magazine started a new series called “How Restaurants, Grocery Stores, Supermarkets, Hospitality Companies and Food Companies Are Helping To Eliminate Food Waste.” In this interview series, we are talking to leaders and principals of Restaurants, Grocery Stores, Supermarkets, Hospitality Companies, Food Companies, and any business or nonprofit that is helping to eliminate food waste, about the initiatives they are taking to eliminate or reduce food waste.
As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jack Bouroudjian.
Jack is Chairman of the Global Smart Commodity Group. He was formerly a member of the board of directors of the CME Group during which time he helped demutualize the exchange and prepare for its IPO. During his time on the Board, Jack was instrumental in conceptualizing the E-mini futures and later creating the Russell 2000 futures and options, S&P Midcap 400 futures and options. Jack has served as CEO of Index Futures Group and President of Commerzbank Futures. As an entrepreneur, Jack has launched over a dozen companies and thrives on developing innovative and disruptive ideas. He is also currently Co-Founder, Chief Economist and Director of the Universal Compute Exchange (UCX). Jack graduated with honors and distinctions from Loyola University of Chicago and is a featured expert contributor on CNBC focusing on market developments and trends.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
After spending over 30 years in the commodity derivatives business, it became apparent that there were huge flaws in the underlying cash marketplaces and subsequently, in the food supply chains. It became my mission to make the supply chains more efficient using blockchain technology and smart contracts to eliminate food waste.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began at your company or organization?
The war in Ukraine and the problems with China have made the origin of products and sourcing of raw materials very critical. Whether it’s a magnet being made for defense or non-GMO corn raised in the U.S., the provenance of the data must be verified and certified.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
It might seem funny but the lack of understanding for how the food supply chain operates by many people is stunning to me. People buy meat, dairy and produce to consume daily, yet spend very little time understanding when, how, and where it was grown. Before going into this industry, I was oblivious to these components too. Educating the average person on what they ingest is important!
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
Leadership is simply bringing out the best in the person, or persons, which you are leading. Leading by example is vital.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“Do what you do best and delegate the rest!” It keeps you from wasting time and builds confidence in those you have delegated to do certain tasks.
Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview. Let’s begin with a basic definition of terms so that all of us are on the same page. What exactly are we talking about when we refer to food waste?
Food waste is an all-encompassing phrase that can mean anything from food wasted by people or restaurants to government subsidies for not growing certain items. But to simplify our mission and objective, we look toward any food item which does not get transported or sold because of supply chain inefficiencies.
Can you help articulate a few of the main causes of food waste?
Issues within the supply chain are where you can find the main causes of food waste. A few of the problems in the supply chain are transportation, there being no real standards in the marketplace, an inefficient cash market dominated by a few large players, and a lack of transparency in the pricing, origin, and source of the product.
What are a few of the obstacles that companies and organizations face when it comes to distributing extra or excess food? What can be done to overcome those barriers?
Adoption by the large players will be important. Large companies do not like change, even when it is for the better. Food producers need to move into the 21st century by using the technology at hand. GSCG feels it’s only a matter of time before all food processors will be required to present the information which is captured on smart contracts. For reference, smart contracts contain the terms and conditions of an agreement between buyer and seller, and the codes will automate the execution of the participants’ agreements. This will be better for the processors and the consumers — it’s a win-win situation for all.
Can you describe a few of the ways that you or your organization are helping to reduce food waste?
By using GSCG’s commodity trading platform, Salus, a buyer gets the exact product with the exact specifications it desired as opposed to buying a product using trust only to find it’s not exactly what was wanted. Sellers get pricing for premium products, such as prime or natural-fed beef, rather than using an antiquated call market. The platform creates a ‘single source of truth’ which gives both buyer and seller everything needed for a true transaction.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help address the root of this problem?
Society needs to understand where food comes from and who is processing it. Too often we consume food without giving a second thought to where it came from or the chemicals used to raise them. Food waste needs to be addressed as global population numbers hit all-time highs. People will always need to eat and it becomes imperative for us as a society to find more effective and efficient ways to feed the world.
What are your “Five things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why.
- ‘Be ready to deviate off course if necessary.’ Covid led us make certain decisions which were unforeseen.
- ‘You’ll never have enough start-up capital.’ This is something every new start-up knows inherently.
- ‘Smart doesn’t always mean good.’ Don’t be fooled by someone’s education. Pride in production and work ethic are underrated.
- ‘Big investors can be either your biggest asset or biggest obstacle.’ Not having investors which understand the nature of the project or involving themselves in the day to day decision making are a recipe for disaster!
- ‘Believe in yourself.’ Self-doubt is natural, overcoming that doubt is critical to success.
Are there other leaders or organizations who have done good work to address food waste? Can you tell us what they have done? What specifically impresses you about their work?
Perhaps we can reach out to them to include them in this series.
There are too many to talk about, but one who has captured my heart is chef Jose Andres, founder of World Central Kitchen. His work is amazing and his story is not well known.
If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
A ‘Feed the World’ movement in which all the nations of the world work together to feed each other. This would make for a very worthy movement.
Is there a person in the world, or in the U.S. with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why?
I’ve been very fortunate to have had lunches with Nobel laureates and heads of state when I was on the board of directors for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, but if I needed to choose someone, it would be Chief Justice Roberts. That would be fascinating!
How can our readers further follow your work online?
They can follow me on LinkedIn or Twitter @JackBouroudjian
This was very meaningful, thank you so much, and we wish you only continued success.
