Author Description

In 2013 a new STW research programme was started on sustainable protein recovery. This STW Protein Programme consisted of five sustainable protein technology projects, which aimed at developing innovative methods to extractproteins from plant leaves, microalgae and insects to meetthe increasing demand for food proteins for humans andlivestock. The aim of the additional STW-project 'Meer en Beter Eiwit'was to summarize and evaluate the main results andconclusions of these five projects. Besides, some morerecent additional insight on protein extraction wassupplemented. Project partners including WUR, knowledgeinstitutes and industry were interviewed to obtain theiropinion on the project performed and future research needs. This has led to a vision document that gives direction tofuture research in the field of protein and technology. The approach of this project was to study the topic fromstart (biomass) via technology to finish (product). It wasfurther put into a larger perspective, looking at the entirechain. When relevant, additional aspects such a soil qualityand global protein demands were included. Biomass choiceWhen choosing a particular protein-recovery technology, biomass selection is the first requirement. Much research isbeing done on new biomass. However, the use of existingraw materials and residual flows should not be neglected. By building on existing processes and chains, fast(er)implementation is possible. Traditional crops like grain arerelatively dry, and the proteins are present in proteinbodies. Therefore, they are more easily extracted and givehigh yields and purities. New, green crops still require a lotof development. Protein streams in the worldProtein-rich sources, like soybeans, rapeseed, maize andwheat are being consumed by both humans and animals. The crop with the largest production volume in Europe is iswheat, followed by potato, maize and barley. Together thesefour crops cover about 85% of the production of proteincrops. Worldwide, maiz