Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic?
Increasing demand for animal-sourced protein is a major driver of the food system’s transgression of the safe environmental operating limits known as planetary boundaries. Microbial proteins are being explored as an alternative to provide sustainable protein security within the planetary boundaries....
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Current Research in Biotechnology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590262822000296 |
| _version_ | 1798006213789614080 |
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| author | Alex Durkin Tim Finnigan Rob Johnson John Kazer Jianfeng Yu David Stuckey Miao Guo |
| author_facet | Alex Durkin Tim Finnigan Rob Johnson John Kazer Jianfeng Yu David Stuckey Miao Guo |
| author_sort | Alex Durkin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Increasing demand for animal-sourced protein is a major driver of the food system’s transgression of the safe environmental operating limits known as planetary boundaries. Microbial proteins are being explored as an alternative to provide sustainable protein security within the planetary boundaries. Here, a design and optimization framework was developed for a closed-loop process in which bioenergy and nutrients are recovered from microbial protein production wastewater. The environmental benefits of a global transition from animal-sourced beef protein toward closed-loop microbial protein with integrated resource recovery was analysed. Microbial protein has a shorter production life cycle than animal-sourced beef protein, thus offering a scalable technology solution to protein security with substantially mitigated environmental impacts. Our results demonstrate the value of environmentally favourable closed-loop food systems to meet projected 2050 protein demand while maintaining food system operations within the safe environmental limits. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T12:51:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0decd5c63ec64edd90c56f76916e98be |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2590-2628 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T12:51:24Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Current Research in Biotechnology |
| spelling | doaj.art-0decd5c63ec64edd90c56f76916e98be2022-12-22T04:23:11ZengElsevierCurrent Research in Biotechnology2590-26282022-01-014365376Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic?Alex Durkin0Tim Finnigan1Rob Johnson2John Kazer3Jianfeng Yu4David Stuckey5Miao Guo6Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UKQuorn Foods, Station Road, Stokesley, North Yorkshire TS9 7AB, UKQuorn Foods, Station Road, Stokesley, North Yorkshire TS9 7AB, UKCarbon Trust, London SE1 9NT, UKDepartment of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UKDepartment of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UKDepartment of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK; Department of Engineering, King’s College London, London WC2R 2LS, UK; Corresponding author at: Department of Engineering, King's College London. London. WC2R 2LS, UK.Increasing demand for animal-sourced protein is a major driver of the food system’s transgression of the safe environmental operating limits known as planetary boundaries. Microbial proteins are being explored as an alternative to provide sustainable protein security within the planetary boundaries. Here, a design and optimization framework was developed for a closed-loop process in which bioenergy and nutrients are recovered from microbial protein production wastewater. The environmental benefits of a global transition from animal-sourced beef protein toward closed-loop microbial protein with integrated resource recovery was analysed. Microbial protein has a shorter production life cycle than animal-sourced beef protein, thus offering a scalable technology solution to protein security with substantially mitigated environmental impacts. Our results demonstrate the value of environmentally favourable closed-loop food systems to meet projected 2050 protein demand while maintaining food system operations within the safe environmental limits.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590262822000296Planetary boundariesMicrobial proteinResource recoverySustainabilityProcess designOptimization |
| spellingShingle | Alex Durkin Tim Finnigan Rob Johnson John Kazer Jianfeng Yu David Stuckey Miao Guo Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? Current Research in Biotechnology Planetary boundaries Microbial protein Resource recovery Sustainability Process design Optimization |
| title | Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? |
| title_full | Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? |
| title_fullStr | Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? |
| title_short | Can closed-loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic? |
| title_sort | can closed loop microbial protein provide sustainable protein security against the hunger pandemic |
| topic | Planetary boundaries Microbial protein Resource recovery Sustainability Process design Optimization |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590262822000296 |
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