Precision fermentation

To improve sustainability in the food ingredients sector, there is an urgent need for alternative, nonagricultural sources of compounds that serve a functional role in formulations, such as emulsifiers, stabilisers, colourants, and flavouring compounds.

'Precision fermentation' is a process for producing complex organic molecules, such as proteins, through

programming of micro-organisms. According to a 2020 report released by think tank ReThinkX 28 it has the

potential to seriously disrupt the dairy and livestock sectors within the next 10 years by enabling cheaper food ingredients that are functionally equivalent to the real thing.

While precision fermentation is not new per se, biotech advances have meant the per kilo cost of

production has reduced massively over the last two decades, from US$1 million in 2000 to $100 today.

And in 10 more years ReThinkx predicts that casein and whey produced via fermentation will be 5 times

cheaper than their dairy-derived counterparts. 28

One particularly intriguing fermentation technology has been developed by VTT Technical Research

Centre of Finland and spun out into a start-up called Solar Foods. Its flagship ingredient, Solein, is produced

using water, electricity and CO2 to feed a secret strain of bacteria found in Finland. The protein is dried to

powder containing 65-75% protein, 10-20% carbohydrates, 4-10% fats, and 4-10% minerals. 29

The innovation has been dubbed 'post-photosynthetic food production', since it does not require sunlight. Neither does it need land or irrigation, making it greener than plant-based protein production. Solein is also self-sufficient; it needs no carbohydrates, protein and fats to grow, unlike cultured animal cells.

In September 2019, Solar Foods entered a strategic collaboration with Finnish manufacturer Fazer Foods to

research the ingredients' use in different food applications. Again, though, we won't be dining on Solein

until at least 2021, since the novel foods dossier has yet to be completed. 30

Solein won't be lonely in the marketplace, either. In November 2019, Californian company Kiverdi heralded the development of a meat-like product made from Air Protein, an ingredient produced using a similar process. Kiverdi say:

"The process to create [Air Protein] uses elements found in the air and is combined

with water and mineral nutrients. It uses renewable energy and a probiotic

production process to convert the elements into a nutrient-rich protein with the

same amino acid profile as an animal protein and packed with crucial B vitamins,

which are often deficient in a vegan diet." 31