Solar Foods in brief
Solar Foods in brief
Solar Foods established in 2017 is a global leader in sustainable protein production, solving the global food production problem by offering a completely new alternative to existing animal and plant proteins.
Solar Foods’ hydrogen fermentation method allows carbon dioxide, electricity and fermentation to grow an unlimited amount of high-quality and versatile protein from a single microbe. Our first product to be commercialised is Solein®. Solein is a naturally occurring single-cell microbe that we produce as a food protein. Our long-term goal is to continuously develop new hydrogen fermentation products and to be an alternative to both animal and plant proteins in all product categories.
Solein production improves the global availability of protein and increases price and quality stability of food raw materials by disconnecting food production from agriculture.
Solein®
Our aim is to commercialise a food raw material with high protein content, acting as a substitute for animal-based food, and which has only a fraction of the environmental impact of meat production, for example.
Solein is produced with our patented technology, utilising raw materials from the air and renewable electricity. In the production process, the microbe found in nature is given its natural conditions to grow and in the production process, the microbes grow freely and continuously split. The final product is a high-nutrient Solein protein powder that can replace traditional protein sources in food or strengthen the properties of food. Solein can replace both animal and plant-based proteins and can be used as is in different foods or made into ingredients for various products.
Sustainability
About one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions are caused by food production and related land use.
Over the next 30 years, protein consumption is predicted to increase by up to 40%. At the same time, the land area available for agriculture is declining, and in Europe, for example, 90% of the area suitable for agriculture is already in use.
Our existence is based on meeting these challenges.
Mission
Our mission is to uncouple food production from land use and traditional agriculture. Uncoupling enables food production in areas where it is currently not possible, for example, due to weather conditions or climate.
Humankind has historically been tied to cultivated soil, its availability and cultivating conditions. In addition, over the past decade, the Paris Agreement’s obligations to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere has brought the effects land use has on carbon sinks in agricultural and forest land to focus.
If less agricultural land is needed, land can be restored to its natural state, natural habitats can be restored, and soil carbon reserves raised. Enabling this scenario is the key impact of our solution.
Solein's use, features, production process and research
Using Solein add
Solein is a naturally occurring single-cell microbe that we produce as a food protein. Solein can be used as a raw material in various foods and product categories. The product categories can be divided into four groups:
1) Products used like dairy products, such as plant-based drinks, spreads and ice creams
2) Products used like meat products
3) Meal replacements and protein powders containing no products of animal origin
4) Plant-based food products that benefit from nutritional supplementation, such as cereal, bars, and pre-cooked soups, where Solein can serve as both the main source of protein and as a nutritious supplement
Solein's features add
Solein is neither a plant nor an animal but a single-cell microbe deriving from Finnish nature. Solein is a completely new type of protein for food use. Based on our shelf life tests, Solein will keep at room temperature for at least a year.
Solein is a nutrient-rich protein powder. Solein powder contains 65-70% protein, 10-15% dietary fibers and 5-8% fats. The Solein microbe can produce thousands of different compounds, including vitamins. In addition, Solein powder contains minerals such as iron.
Solein only has little saturated fats and no cholesterol, unlike animal-based products. Solein contains a lot of iron and B vitamins, such as vitamin B12, which, in turn, are hardly present in plant products. Thus, Solein combines the benefits of both meat and plant proteins without their biggest disadvantages.
Solein has a mild, slightly umami taste, so it is expected to be suitable for both savoury and sweet foods. Solein gives the food a rich and velvety mouthfeel. Solein’s flavour profile and properties are therefore well suited to highlight the flavours of foods, bring them out, and balance them. The taste of Solein can also be completely masked if desired.
Solein's production process add
Solein is a single-cell microbe that grows mainly with raw materials from the air and electricity. We have discovered the Solein microbe in Finnish nature as a result of our own research. In the production process, we provide the microbe with its natural growth conditions, offering it the same raw materials that it would also need to grow in nature.
The main raw materials for production are carbon dioxide and electricity. Solein production strives to use fossil-free energy, which results in the lowest environmental impact and based on research the smallest carbon footprint compared to all other known protein sources. The production process is about ten times more efficient than plant photosynthesis. We can grow protein from a microscopically small “seed” that can replace traditional protein sources in food or strengthen the properties of food. In theory, we can grow food indefinitely in a continuous process from a single "seed".
The essential minerals required for Solein production are calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, potassium, sulphur, and sodium, which together account for more than 99% of all minerals used in Solein.
R&D and patents of Solein add
Solein's production process has since the very beginning been developed by Solar Foods, starting with the discovery of its own organism in Finnish nature. At the centre of the process is continuous bioprocess cultivation, where the organism grows, i.e. Solein is produced. A production rate has been achieved in a laboratory scale (10 litres) that is economically sufficient if the same production speed can be moved first to the demonstration scale in Factory 01 and finally to full production scale in Factory 02.
Our key patent is Solein's production organism patent. The production organism of Solein is a previously unknown micro-organism that we discovered in our screening. In total, our patent portfolio has 12 patent families, including more than 160 patent applications, of which 28 have been granted. All patent families primarily include EPO and PCT applications, for which 9-13 applications have been submitted to selected countries worldwide.
For key strategic patents, such as the production organism patent, the plan is to expand the scope of protection in the future with patent applications in more than 30 countries, in addition to EPO and PCT. Other patent families include inventions related to, for example, bioreactor technology, processing and food technology.
