LOWER COST AND MORE SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF HIGH VALUE SINGLE CELL PROTEIN THAT HAS BEEN OPTIMISED AS A FISHMEAL REPLACEMENT

As the rapidly growing aquaculture industry expands to meet humanity’s ever-increasing appetite for protein, the demand for fishmeal – a primary ingredient in aquafeeds - is on the rise. Unsustainable harvesting practices have depleted wild fish stocks and has led to a surge in fishmeal prices over recent years. Deploying protein alternatives that are more sustainable, higher value to the customer and cost-effective is needed. The protein alternative must be comparable to fishmeal in terms of protein content, amino acid composition, palatability and digestibility and this has posed significant challenges which MicroBioGen is addressing through its deep technology, elite genetics development program.

MicroBioGen leads the world in the development of novel and improved strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This yeast is the world’s leading microorganism workhorse with over US$2 trillion in products annually relying on it for production.  After 20 years of technology development, MicroBioGen has successfully partnered with Novozymes (Novonesis) and now leads the world in supplying superior yeast strains to produce 1st and 2nd generation bioethanol.  Billions of litres of extra biofuel are being produced as a result of utilising MicroBioGen developed yeast strains.  MicroBioGen’s elite genetics technology is now being optimised and deployed in the production of single cell protein+ from large scale biofuel and dairy waste/side streams. These waste/side streams include biodiesel, dairy and bioethanol which are rich in compounds such as glycerol and organic acids.

Some of the additional features that have been added to Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast by the MicroBioGen team to improve sustainability, lower production costs and increase value to the customer, include the following:

• Ability to grow at industrial rates and productivities on glycerol, xylose and various organic acids as well as retain typical C6 sugar yields and productivities.
• Protein content of 15% to 20% higher than typical Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast.
• An excellent amino acid profile (to be disclosed in the presentation).
• Accumulation of enzymes to replace exogenously added enzymes, e.g. phytase.
• Palatability, along with the option to accumulate antioxidants such as glutathione.
• The organism has been 100% developed utilising non-GM technology, thus reducing compliance issues and increasing unit value.

The above features allow single cell protein to be grown on non-sugar waste/side streams at industrial rates, making it cheap to produce and higher value than other single cell protein options.  This paper will highlight the value of various added features, amino acid profile and impact on production costs and unit value amongst others.