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Research

Solutions Database

Plant-based ingredient analytical and characterization service

Plant-based food manufacturers often struggle with batch-to-batch ingredient inconsistency and variability between suppliers. Better analytical tools for predicting plant-based ingredient performance could improve manufacturing efficiency and create more transparent ingredient markets. Tools are needed to predict how ingredients will perform after various processing methods and in end-product applications like plant-based meat and dairy.

  1. Academics
  2. Compliance
  3. Crop development
  4. End product formulation & manufacturing
  5. End Products
  6. Industry
  7. Industry
  8. Ingredient optimization
  9. Investment
  10. Investors
  11. Plant-Based
  12. Production
  13. R&D
  14. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  15. Research
  16. Science
  17. Species-agnostic
  18. Startups
Solutions Database

Biological processing methods for isolating protein ingredients

Processing crops into flours, isolates, and concentrates often relies on chemical and mechanical methods. Biological processing techniques may impart the desired composition and molecular structure for optimal functionality with increased precision, lower cost, and greater suitability for small-scale processing. Biological processing techniques include using enzymes to fine-tune functional properties like solubility, gelling capacity, and fat- and water-binding capacity or using microbial fermentation to convert plant protein feedstocks into more functional forms.

  1. Academics
  2. End product formulation & manufacturing
  3. End Products
  4. Fermentation
  5. Industry
  6. Industry
  7. Ingredient optimization
  8. Investors
  9. Plant-Based
  10. Production
  11. R&D
  12. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  13. Research
  14. Science
  15. Species-agnostic
  16. Startups
Solutions Database

Cultivated meat co-product valorization

Animal cell metabolism within cultivators can produce useful co-product side streams that provide monetary value to the manufacturer while creating a novel source of inputs for other industries. Potential side streams should be identified and analyzed for their utility and economic viability, in addition to developing methods for efficient side stream capture.

  1. Academics
  2. Bioprocess design
  3. Cell culture media
  4. Commercial
  5. Cultivated
  6. Industry
  7. R&D
  8. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  9. Research
  10. Science
  11. Seafood-relevant
  12. Startups
Solutions Database

Techno-economic models to inform product and process development

Techno-economic models are critical for process design and cost of goods projections. Open-access models based on generalized or exemplar processes with standardized unit operations and designs can form the foundation for individual companies’ work, reducing duplicative effort. Furthermore, techno-economic models can identify key cost drivers and opportunities for process improvements to guide future research efforts. The independent research consultancy CE Delft recently published a cultivated meat techno-economic analysis. However, similar efforts are needed for fermentation-derived  and plant-based meat production.

  1. Academics
  2. Cultivated
  3. End Products
  4. Fermentation
  5. Industry
  6. Industry
  7. Investment
  8. Investors
  9. Plant-Based
  10. Production
  11. R&D
  12. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  13. Research
  14. Science
  15. Species-agnostic
  16. Startups
Solutions Database

Biosynthetic pathway discovery for fermentation-produced molecules

After identifying specific target molecules or desired functionalities in animal-derived foods, scientists can work backward, mining microbial sequences for candidate molecules in the microbial realm that might provide similar functionality. This process can also elucidate the pathways that produce these molecules and inform strategies for designing microbial strains that produce these molecules at scale.

  1. Academics
  2. Commercial
  3. Fermentation
  4. Host strain development
  5. Industry
  6. Industry
  7. Ingredient optimization
  8. Production
  9. R&D
  10. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  11. Research
  12. Science
  13. Species-agnostic
  14. Startups
  15. Target molecule selection
Solutions Database

Protein sequence, structure, and functionality database

There is a need for deeper fundamental research on the relationships between protein sequence, structure, functionality, and ultimately performance in plant-based food products. While several plant-based companies have claimed a competitive advantage from building databases of functional properties and applying machine learning to inform protein selection and formulation, these capabilities remain proprietary and the efforts duplicative. An open-access database could provide functional and characterization data using standardized methods to facilitate direct performance comparisons among proteins and train predictive algorithms.

  1. Academics
  2. Crop development
  3. GFI
  4. Industry
  5. Industry
  6. Ingredient optimization
  7. Investors
  8. NGO's
  9. Plant-Based
  10. R&D
  11. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  12. Research
  13. Science
  14. Species-agnostic
  15. Startups
Solutions Database

Fat production & encapsulation within oleaginous yeast

Oleaginous yeast can convert sugars into fats that impart flavor and mouthfeel to alternative proteins, and they can accumulate lipids within their cell bodies to inhibit oxidation. New research on lipid encapsulation in yeast should investigate the efficacy of yeast species for the accumulation and storage of lipids—including lipids with the same profile as animal lipids.

  1. Academics
  2. Commercial
  3. Fermentation
  4. Host strain development
  5. Industry
  6. Industry
  7. Ingredient optimization
  8. Production
  9. R&D
  10. Raw Materials, Ingredients, & Inputs
  11. Research
  12. Science
  13. Species-agnostic
  14. Startups
  15. Target molecule selection
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