The Danish collaborative innovation project, BioFactory, has developed new methods for stimulating and utilising functional substances in plants to meet rising consumer demands for food products without chemical additives.
The global focus on healthy and organic food production has led to a large increase in consumer-demands for products without additives and chemical colourings, as well as increased demands for herbal products and healthy foods as alternatives to standardised medicine. This poses a challenge for food companies to develop solutions where plants can be designed to ensure that their natural content of functional components and colourings is high enough for commercial extraction.
Cross-collaboration towards mutual benefits
The Danish innovation project, BioFactory, used advanced biotechnology in their process of coming up with a solution. Led by the Danish Technological Institute, the project involved ingredient producer Novonesis, the universities of Copenhagen and Southern Denmark and many other representatives from the food value chain. Inspiration came from a growing number of consumers who choose to avoid foods with artificial additives. Many natural alternatives currently exist – such as colourings in carrots and beetroot – but at a level too low to make profitable. During the BioFactory project, scientists successfully developed new methods for identifying and growing plant varieties with a high content of specific functional substances. One approach is to stress the plants during growth by subjecting them to excessive light or drought. This stimulates the plant’s natural defence system, so more of the substances are produced.
Functional substances were seen to increase by up to three times their original concentration during BioFactory’s breeding and cultivation experiments
Scientific findings can lead to new business opportunities
Functional substances were seen to increase by up to three times their original concentration during BioFactory’s breeding and cultivation experiments. In addition to developing carrots rich in carotene and anthocyanins, scientists looked into other substances, which could provide value to natural medicine and healthy food. This includes red clover, which contains a type of oestrogen for relieving the symptoms of menopause; roseroot, containing salidroside and rosavin for the treatment of stress; and hemp, which has shown potential as a treatment for neurological disorders.
A collaboration between the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Aalborg University and five Danish companies has resulted in the development of a new method of extracting side streams from raw materials – revealing valuable new business opportunities.
With an increasing global population and international initiatives to secure sustainable food production in the future, the food industry is in a constant search of new methods of utilising every resource to its fullest – thereby cutting both climate impact and company costs.
What happens to the leftovers when potatoes and seaweed are used as raw materials for food ingredients such as starch, alginate and carrageenan? Until recently, such side streams have either been sold off for animal feed or been used as fertilizer on agricultural fields – thereby wasting valuable components that can be used for better utilisation of other raw materials.
Modern technology identifies valuable new resources
However, scientists from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and Aalborg University have together with five Danish companies developed a method that can scan side streams for valuable proteins and clip them into functional peptides. Based on modern bioinformatics, the method has already identified useful peptide emulsifiers in potato protein. Tests show that these peptides are suitable for encapsulating fish oil, which is particularly sensitive to oxidation, extending its shelf life. Many other opportunities exist to obtain flavourings and preservatives from protein-containing sidestreams.
Improving business and meeting consumer demands
Apart from optimising raw material utilisation, protein extraction makes excellent business sense – increasing the value of side streams by a thousand-fold. The fact that the new additives come from proteins which have been in the food chain for centuries also meets the growing consumer demand for naturally functional ingredients.
Apart from optimising raw material utilisation, protein extraction makes excellent business sense – increasing the value of side streams a thousand-fold
The method is not limited to potatoes and seaweed but can also be used to scan any protein-containing crop or side stream, such as the wastewater from industrial fish processing.
Danish manufacturer, Hamlet Protein, produces high-quality soy proteins used for piglet weaning feed – ensuring easy digestion and low environmental impact.
To solve the global challenge of producing more food for a rising population while also reducing climate impact, more efficient utilisation of resources – including animal feed – is an important step towards a solution
Piglets and other young animals have an immature gut with a limited ability to absorb nutrients. So, if their feed is too hard to digest, the consequences can be severe for their health, growth and feed utilisation. These issues impose serious risks to the farmers who need to produce high-yield livestock with fewer resources and full consideration for animal welfare.
Danish innovation has become a global benchmark
The Danish supplier of speciality feed proteins, Hamlet Protein, began working on a solution to the problem three decades ago. In the early stages of the company’s life, one their innovations became the benchmark for a whole new category of easily digestible, premium soy proteins for piglet weaning feed. Hamlet Protein’s success is rooted in its customised bio-conversion process, which minimises the anti-nutritional factors that compromise the bioavailability of soy protein while keeping the amino acid profile intact. Hamlet Protein produces its high-quality feed ingredients at facilities in Denmark and the USA, using a process with a minimal environmental footprint.
Hamlet Protein produces high-quality feed using its customised bio-conversion process with a minimal environmental footprint
Benefits on both animal welfare and business results
International feeding trials have documented lifelong benefits for animal welfare, growth and performance – at least on a par with the benefits of animal-derived proteins. In terms of feed efficiency, the speciality proteins give farmers an optimum return on investment – ensuring a more sustainable production where less is wasted, and climate impact is reduced.
By turning by-products of meat into functional proteins, Danish-based Essentia Protein Solutions, is improving the quality and the shelf life of meat products sold in supermarkets – resulting in less food waste.
Appearance is everything when consumers buy fresh meat and poultry. So, if a product loses colour or liquid seeps into the packaging, consumers will believe it to be poor quality or spoiled – and it will probably never be sold and eventually wasted. This poses a challenge for retailers and manufacturers in terms of reaching SDG 12.3 of halving per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels by 2030.
Natural ingredients reduce additives and increase appeal
A global ingredients producer based in Denmark; Essentia Protein Solutions has developed a range of natural ingredients to help manufacturers maximise their products’ appeal throughout their shelf life. As an example, Essentia’s functional meat proteins minimise liquid seepage and maintain the proper shape of patties and meatballs. Micro-granulated meat pigment is available to give meat products a stable colour without the need for further additives. In years gone by, slaughterhouses struggled to find an outlet for by-products in meat such as pork rind and greaves.
Natural ingredients improve products’ appeal throughout their shelf life
Functional proteins yield multiple benefits
Today, these by-products are the raw material for Essentia’s functional ingredient production. In other words, former waste products are currently being used to reduce meat waste in the chilled storage counters. The multi-functional proteins provide other benefits as well. These include improving meat texture and structure and speeding up the drying process of dried and fermented meat products.
The Danish ingredient company, KMC, has launched a commercial potato protein that can serve as a sustainable alternative to animal proteins.
World population growth has created an urgent need for new sustainable sources of protein which among other things can help maintain muscle mass. This ongoing search is often focused on plant-based proteins that can serve as a more climate-friendly alternative to animal proteins. However, there is one source that has long gone under the radar – the humble potato. The potato is a non-GMO, non-allergenic and high yield crop with a very low climate impact, thus presenting a valuable potential for the development of sustainable protein sources.
Danish specialisation is paving the way for new developments
The Danish ingredient company, KMC, which is owned by potato farmers, has recognised the potential of the potato and has specialised in producing functional ingredients from potato starch for a wide range of food products since 1933. During that time, the company has mainly sold the protein-containing side stream from starch production for feed.
Potato protein maximises the utilisation and value of potato harvest and helps food manufacturers meet rising protein demands
Today, following intense product development and a major investment in processing technology, the company has launched its first commercial potato protein – a development that both maximises the utilisation and value of the potato harvest and helps food manufacturers meet rising protein demands.
Cutting waste by efficient resource-utilisation
Now only the mineral-containing potato juice remains at the end of the KMC production line. KMC sends this back to the fields to nourish the next season’s crops – completing a circular supply chain, where nothing goes to waste.
Ensuring a healthy diet for piglets straight from birth can have a great positive impact on productivity in pig farms. The Danish agricultural production company, Vilofoss, is providing customised feed blends based on highly digestible raw materials.
The global demand for animal products is expected to be scaled up with a growing population. Therefore, action must be taken to increase production while reducing CO2-emission and adhering to UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. A part of the solution is ensuring healthy diets for the animals – increasing both welfare and productivity.
A healthy diet leads to a healthy business
Vilofoss is a specialist in vitamins and minerals for piglet feed and an expert in formulating customised premixes for pig production. It is also a company that understands the importance of early feed intake for getting piglets off to the very best start. If piglets increase their feed intake by 100g during the first week after weaning, they will then weigh a full kilo more at the age of 42 days. That is a sign of good health – both for the piglets and for the farmer’s business. The key to success is to keep the digestive tract in balance without using high levels of zinc, which has been subject to an EU ban from mid-2022. Therefore, Vilofoss weaner blends are based on highly digestible raw materials with plenty of flavour and aroma to encourage a healthy appetite.
Weaner blends on highly digestible raw materials encourages a healthy appetite with plenty of flavour and aroma
Customised products ensure better performance
Multiple trials in a Danish commercial piglet unit and independent scientific testing confirm that by using tailored Vilofoss products, it is possible to achieve optimal piglet performance without zinc oxide or increased antibiotic use.
Carefully formulated feed mix is vital to healthy piglet growth from just a few days after birth. Even though vitamins and minerals are only a small part of the mix, they contribute to as much as 80% of a pig farm’s productivity – by stimulating biological processes and helping to build muscle tissue.
In a major collaboration project between University of Copenhagen and the Danish ingredient company Novonesis, the Danish collaborative culture has come up with innovative solutions to fight against pathogens in meat products.
Millions of tonnes of meat, dairy and ready-to-eat food products are thrown away every year due to their high vulnerability to food pathogens and spoilage bacteria. Sometimes the best way to outsmart such contaminants is to recruit beneficial bacteria – through fermentation with a protective effect.
Inspiration from collaborative research
Novonesis has developed a range of protective biosolutions that help keep meat, dairy and other food products safe and fresh for longer while maintaining taste and texture.
More than two decades have passed since research at the University of Copenhagen provided inspiration for the range. A collaborative study by the Danish Technological Institute and the meat industry found that the lactic acid bacteria naturally present in meat products can provide protection against the effect of unwanted flora. Drawing on these findings, Novonesis went on to find those strains of lactic acid bacteria that can effectively protect meat products from contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. This marked the beginning of what is now an extensive portfolio of lactic acid bacteria and other food cultures that both inhibit food spoilage and protect against harmful contaminants.
the cultures provide a series of added benefits – naturally improving colour, flavour and texture development without need of chemical additives
When used in bacon or salami, the cultures provide a series of added benefits – naturally improving colour, flavour and texture development without need of chemical additives.
Biosolutions with multiple benefits
Novonesis has also helped save over one million tonnes of yoghurt by using specific beneficial bacteria that produce lactic acid compounds. This both creates an environment where harmful microorganisms are unable to grow and contributes to the yoghurt’s distinctive taste and texture.
Plus Pack’s vision is to transform the single-use food packaging industry to a more sustainable one by offering food packaging at net zero CO2. The company offers a range of recyclable aluminium containers for the food industry which serve as a stepping-stone towards the development of a more sustainable economy.
Due to the growing demand for fast easy meals and take-away solutions, food service, retail and the restaurant industry have for many years been characterised by a use-and-throw-away culture when it comes to food packaging. This has resulted in a great waste of material and valuable resources. With a rapidly growing population and climate crisis urgency, food producers need to develop and use sustainable packaging solutions that helps reduce climate impact while meeting rising consumer demands for convenience.
Danish company Plus Pack focuses on delivering customised and recyclable packaging solutions to the food industry with zero CO2 emissions. Recyclable products contribute to a sustainable economy in which waste is treated as valuable material.
Aluminium packaging supports a sustainable economy
Plus Packs´ Ready2Cook® containers are made of aluminium – a material that fits perfectly into a circular economy. Aluminium can be recycled again and again without loss of functionality.
The aluminium containers can be used as cooking trays and are for ready-to-cook and ready-to-heat meals, which offers consumers the convenience of ready meals. Ready2Cook® containers are ideal for fresh or frozen food, either fish, meat or vegetables and it goes directly in the oven, microwave oven or on the grill.
Recycling ALUMINIUM saves 96% CO2 and contributes to a sustainable economy
Efficient energy reduction for food businesses
In Spain, a food producer renowned for its advanced production techniques and quality control standards, produces a wide range of fresh fish products. The company has shifted to use Plus Packs’ Ready2Cook® aluminium containers for a new range of whole, fresh fish products for supermarkets among other things to increase the sustainability of their production.
The use of aluminium in food packaging offers several advantages – by recycling rather than extracting new aluminium, you save 96% CO2 and with 75% of all aluminium ever produced still in use it contributes to a circular economy.
Around the world authorities are setting high demands for commercial kitchens in terms of hygiene and the overall cleanliness. At the same time an increased focus on sustainability and adherence to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals within the food industry, is making the development of chemical-free cleaning solutions within commercial kitchens key.
Commercial kitchens such as restaurants and cafes located in urban areas are often demanded to reduce the cooking odour from their ventilation system, while industry regulations set standards to reduce the amounts of harmful chemical residues to better air pollution.
The Danish company JIMCO A/S specialises in natural odour and grease control in commercial kitchens by using patented UV-C & Ozone technology instead of chemicals, thus providing an environmentally friendly cleaning solution.
Eliminating bacteria growth with UV-light
The UV-C & Ozone technology from JIMCO A/S results in a cold incineration of organic matter such as bacteria, fungi and vira from a process called photolytic oxidation – combining photolysis and ozonolysis. Photolysis is a process where the organic molecules (e.g. fat, grease and oil) are broken down by photons, when exposed to UV-C light. Ozonolysis is the process of oxidation of the molecules which is incinerated by means of cold incineration.
Reduces grease and fat in kitchens with up to 85% and odour reduction to the surroundings up to 91%
The result is grease and odour reduction from kitchen extraction and ventilation systems that do not leave any harmful chemical residues. JIMCO A/S´s vision is to increase the implementation of this environmentally friendly solutions and to accelerate the chemical-free cleaning without compromising the result.
Documented results creating new business opportunities
Tested and documented by the European Environmental Technology Verification (ETV), the appliance of solutions by JIMCO A/S can result in grease and fat reduction in kitchens up to 85% and odour reduction to the surroundings up to 91%. This verification has led authorities to allow commercial kitchens to be placed in areas that are sensitive to odour, creating new business opportunities for restaurateurs while also improving hygiene and reducing environmental impact when cleaning.
For fish factories around the world, customer complaints about bones are one of the most common causes of recalls and returned shipments – with massive food waste as a result.
Still to this day, a significant number of consumers are reluctant to consume fish due to potential fish bones. Novel x-ray technology from the Danish company Innospexion is proving to be a highly effective solution.
The technology bridges a gap in bone detecting capabilities. Fishbones below 0.3 mm in thickness are not a problem because they are too small to notice. But, as fish processing lines were previously unable to detect bones below 0.7 mm, that left a significant margin for consumer dissatisfaction.
Innospexion’s specialised x-ray imaging tool has now broken through this barrier – making it possible to detect fish bones right down to 0.1 mm at a speed of up to 300 frames a second.
Accurate and reliable bone detection for guaranteeing boneless fish products
The system is designed for automatic bone detection in trimmed fillets from cod, haddock, red fish and other species. In addition, it can locate pin bones in salmon and small bone fragments in cut-offs used for fish blocks.
Each time a bone is detected, a computer control system sends a signal to a machine which then removes the bones from fish meat.
In this way, fish processors can ensure their products always deliver a high-quality eating experience and eliminate a wasteful problem.
