In this issue of Food & Drink Matters, we are pleased to feature FoodOp as our Kitchen Innovator Company of the Month
Founded in 2021 by Nichlas Saul (CEO) and Christian Borkenfelt (CTO), Copenhagen-based FoodOp was born from an unexpected discovery inside a professional kitchen. While the company’s roots lie in tackling food waste, its founders quickly realised the real challenge facing chefs extended far beyond wasted ingredients.
The idea emerged after Saul’s uncle, who runs a Danish contract catering business with around 80 sites across business and industry and education sectors, completed a major food waste initiative. The project generated a wealth of kitchen data, and with backgrounds in statistics, Saul and Borkenfelt were asked to transform those figures into meaningful insights. Spending time in kitchens across Denmark gave them a first-hand understanding of where and why food waste occurred, but one particular visit changed their perspective entirely.
Shadowing the head chef at the headquarters of one of the Big Four accounting firms, they expected to spend the day watching food being prepared. Instead, they watched him buried in spreadsheets, ordering systems and reporting, with remarkably little time spent actually cooking. It was a turning point. Food waste, they realised, was simply a symptom of a wider problem: professional kitchens were being slowed by fragmented systems, disconnected tools and endless administrative work. Within days, Borkenfelt left his role at McKinsey, Saul followed suit, and FoodOp was set in motion.
Today, the company remains headquartered in Copenhagen, with a growing presence in the UK through its London office, opened during its international expansion. The platform is now used by almost 1,000 professional kitchens across five countries, with the Nordics and the UK serving as its core markets.
FoodOp positions itself at the intersection of foodservice operations and technology as a digital co-pilot for professional kitchens. Its connected platform combines menu planning, allergen management, recipe costing, digital menu displays, food waste tracking and sustainability reporting into a single system, replacing the patchwork of spreadsheets and disconnected software that many kitchens still rely on.
A key differentiator is its flexible API-based architecture, which allows operators to integrate existing supplier, procurement and point-of-sale systems rather than replacing them. Just as importantly, the platform has been designed alongside chefs themselves, ensuring that the technology supports creativity instead of disrupting it, freeing kitchen teams to focus on what matters most: creating memorable culinary experiences.
“Something we really pride ourselves on is that we’ve managed to build a software tool that chefs actually like using, which is rarely the case,” says Jonathan Blauenfeldt Nielsen, Head of UK & Ireland. “Everything we build is with the chef in mind and we continuously engage with our users to make sure we understand how they work and what they need.”
“We’re particularly proud of our UK growth over the past year,” he adds. “The reception has been really positive since expanding into the UK, and we’re growing much faster than we anticipated. Another huge milestone was raising £4.4 million in our seed round in March, which has enabled us to double down on the UK and scale our team to match demand.”
Led by MK Capital, FoodOp raised £4.4 million in funding to accelerate expansion in the UK and US. With many professional kitchens still relying on paper-based processes, FoodOp’s AI-powered platform aims to reduce administrative work, food waste, and operating costs while supporting sustainability goals.
Looking ahead, FoodOp’s ambitions extend well beyond its early success in the UK. The company is focused on strengthening its presence within the contract catering and hospitality sectors throughout 2026, while laying the foundations for a US launch in 2027. At the same time, its next major innovation – the AI Chef Assistant – is already in development, with a vision of creating a voice-controlled digital assistant capable of handling everything from stock takes and procurement to menu publishing and budgeting.
The company’s guiding philosophy is reflected in its tagline: “Streamline your operations. Cut costs. Lead on sustainability.” As Jonathan explains, “FoodOp has been built with the chef in mind, and we have always been guided by simplicity, practicality and client impact. We insist that great food and operational efficiency should not be mutually exclusive.”
That practical approach is particularly relevant as allergen compliance becomes increasingly important under Natasha’s Law. By ensuring allergen information updates automatically across digital displays, printed materials and guest-facing channels whenever a recipe changes, FoodOp offers operators a single, reliable source of truth.
Perhaps most compelling is the company’s belief that commercial success and environmental impact can grow together. Over the past year alone, FoodOp estimates its clients have collectively reduced around 6,500 tonnes of CO2e through lower food waste and more sustainable menu planning, while saving approximately £2.4 million in the process – a tangible reminder that smarter kitchens can also be more sustainable.
As professional kitchens continue to balance rising costs, tighter compliance and sustainability expectations, FoodOp is making a compelling case that smarter technology can put chefs back where they belong: creating exceptional food, inspiring teams and shaping a more efficient, resilient and sustainable future for the foodservice industry as a whole.
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