Finland’s Solar Foods has started producing protein from carbon dioxide and electricity. The plant can produce 160 tons of food per year. Solene protein can be used in meat substitutes, cheeses, milkshakes and more.
New technologies for food production
Solar Foods has begun producing food from electricity and air at its first factory in Vantaa, near Helsinki. The company is producing a protein called solein, which can be used in a variety of foods, according to The Guardian.
The factory will be able to produce 160 tonnes of food per year – a tiny fraction of the global food industry, but Solar Foods CEO Pasi Vainikka hopes the technology will revolutionise the way people eat.
Reducing environmental impact
Food and agriculture are responsible for about a quarter of all carbon dioxide emissions that affect the climate, and Solein has the potential to reduce agriculture’s environmental impact.
Solene comes in the form of a yellowish powder made from a single-celled organism similar to the yeast used in making bread and beer, and the company hopes the protein will be used in meat substitutes, cheeses and milkshakes, as well as an egg substitute in noodles, pasta and mayonnaise.
Solar Foods uses renewable electricity from the sun to split water, then feeds the hydrogen and oxygen to microorganisms in fermentation vessels, along with carbon dioxide captured from the air by the company’s ventilation system.
The process uses significantly less land than conventional agriculture: Solar Foods’ pilot plant produces 160 tons per year on one-fifth of a hectare of land, compared to 3.3 tons of soybeans per hectare in efficient American farms.
Future outlook
Solar Foods has received novel food approval for Sorain in Singapore and is now aiming to introduce the product in the US and EU. The company hopes that the technology can coexist with conventional agriculture, offering more choice to consumers.
Vainikka believes that in the future, rather than just powders, most of our food will still come from plants, and he sees Solein as a complement to reduce pressure on agricultural land and allow reforestation to take place.
We’ve written about Solar Foods before:
🍦 Sweet! Try some air ice cream
The ice cream is made from ingredients created out of thin air, a feat achieved by Finnish food technology company Solar Foods.
🥛 Solar Foods starts producing milk without cows
The HYDROCOW project aims to produce sustainable dairy protein using CO2 and electricity, without the need for cows.
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