Imagine taking the leftover waste from citric acid production and treating it like a gold mine. Instead of throwing it away, this process uses special enzymes to extract high-value ingredients. It turns fungal waste into a sustainable oil that replaces palm oil and a natural polymer used in glues and skincare.
Industries rely on fossil-based chemicals or land-intensive plant oils (like palm oil) that harm biodiversity. There is a critical need for sustainable, non-food biomass alternatives that are economically viable.
An integrated biorefinery process that extracts chitin and chitosan from A. niger waste and converts fungal hydrolysates into yeast oil.
If you are a skincare brand dealing with the environmental impact of palm oil—this project developed a yeast oil that acts as a drop-in alternative. It provides a bio-based replacement for fossil and plant oils, preserving biodiversity.
If you are a plywood manufacturer dealing with synthetic glues—this project developed a high-purity chitosan (90% chitin) that can be used directly in plywood production as a bio-based adhesive.
If you are a chemical plant dealing with fossil-derived raw materials—this project developed yeast oil and chitosan oligomers that serve as sustainable building blocks for resins and coatings.
Based on available project data, specific price points per kilogram are not provided, but the project focused on demonstrating commercial viability and economic benefit over conventional palm oil.
The project achieved pilot scale production of crude yeast oil reaching 142 kg and produced chitin in batches ranging from 5kg up to 20kg.
Based on available project data, the project developed an enzymatic chitosan production route, but specific patent numbers or licensing terms are not listed.
The yeast oil is described as a 'drop-in alternative,' meaning it can replace existing fossil- or plant-based oils in cosmetics and resins without requiring major process changes.
The project period runs from 2022-09-01 to 2025-08-31, with end-user trials already completed during the project phase.
The consortium is heavily industry-weighted with a 56% industry ratio, comprising 5 industrial partners (4 of which are SMEs) and 4 academic/research entities. This balance suggests a strong focus on commercial application rather than pure theory, with a geographic spread across Germany, Hungary, Greece, Spain, and Norway.
Contact the Technical University of Munich (TUM) regarding the VALUABLE project
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