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– The EU research project with the participation of the University of Hohenheim is looking for new sustainable food additives and packaging materials made from seaweed.
Minapim by Hernan Valenzuela: Seaweed is already used by industry as a source of raw material for stabilizers or thickeners and gelling agents such as agar, alginate and carrageenan. Research is increasingly interested in its potential as a supplier of carbohydrates to bioplastics.
These are not only biodegradable, but with additional properties they can help to ensure that foods packaged in them have a longer shelf life. However, the usual extraction processes are currently very inefficient.
In the EU-funded research project BIOCARB-4-FOOD, researchers are now looking for more sustainable processes for the extraction of carbohydrates from so-called macroalgae, that is, large types of algae and also seaweed.
In doing so, they investigate the question of how these substances can be obtained from the raw material, “We are looking for alternative natural resources, such as algae and marine plants. Not only because they are abundant, but also because they have a large number of potentially interesting connections ”, explains Dr. Amparo Lopez-Rubio of the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC) in Valencia, Spain, and coordinator of the BIOCARB project -4-FOOD.
“The seaweed industry is already generating sales of around 7.4 billion dollars (around 6.3 billion euros) worldwide – and the trend is growing. Because of their special physico-chemical and biological properties, the interest of the food and pharmaceutical industries in compounds extracted from algae is growing ”, explains Dr. Nadja Reinhardt, from the Bioeconomics Research Center at the University of Hohenheim, who took over the communication from the project.
One of the tasks of BIOCARB-4-FOOD is to produce new types of extracts that can be used as food ingredients – far beyond use as gelling or thickening agents. Because of the specific properties of these algae carbohydrates, also known as phyllocolloids, scientists also see the potential to use them as smart packaging materials.
Making better use of potential – for more sustainability and competitiveness
However, current methods of extracting carbohydrates from algae are extremely inefficient, both in terms of processing time and water and energy consumption. In addition, the remaining biomass – usually much more than 50% of the raw material – is used as compost or simply disposed of as organic waste.
The main task of the scientists in the BIOCARB-4-FOOD project is, therefore, on the one hand, to research new ecologically correct and more efficient extraction methods, such as ultrasound, microwaves and enzymes, and to combine them together to optimize the process.
On the other hand, resource efficiency must be improved with the use of the remaining biomass after extraction, still rich in bioactive compounds, for the production of carbohydrates and fibers such as cellulose and nanocellulose.
Researchers are not only keeping an eye on the types of seaweed that are already used commercially, but also on raw materials that have had little or no use until now, such as algae. The more efficient use of raw materials should also contribute to improving the competitiveness of seaweed, seaweed, food and non-food companies in the EU.
Finally, the resulting products are examined for their properties, such as structure, bioactivity, toxicity and technological usability, and the sustainability of the processes is verified through a life cycle assessment.
Promising results
The results of BIOCARB-4-FOOD so far are promising: experiments with the red alga Gelidium sesquipedale from the Mediterranean show that the extraction of agar can be considerably simplified if the treatment with hot water is combined with ultrasound. In comparison with conventional methods, the extraction time can be reduced by a factor of four – and this without significantly impairing the extraction yield and the physical and chemical properties of the products.
Shorter extraction times and better yields not only reduce emissions and costs: initial calculations show that the ecological footprint of agar production is reduced to around one fifth.
“Unfortunately, until now we have only been able to test this on a laboratory scale,” laments Dr. Lopez-Rubio. “The companies involved in our consortium are working on an upscaling so that the results achieved in our laboratories are also transferred to industrial production. ”
Plastics made from seaweed
Most of the food we consume today is packaged in plastic – with family problems: this plastic is usually obtained from crude oil with limited resources. It also has a great impact on the environment, since most plastic waste takes more than 400 years to decompose. Even so-called compostable plastic, for example made from starch, requires higher temperatures or humidity to decompose than under natural conditions.
The BIOCARB-4-FOOD researchers are therefore working on more sustainable food packaging that has the necessary mechanical and chemical properties.
Dr. Lopez-Rubio explains: “We have to look for alternative sources of raw material that do not compete with food production. This is the reason why marine resources, like seaweed and seaweed, are very interesting. They reproduce very quickly, grow in a wide variety of environments and, as an alternative source of biomass for bioplastics, do not interfere with food production. “
Even the remnants of industrial extractions can be used, because the remaining biomass still contains enough bioactive compounds to make new extracts and fibers based on carbohydrates, for example cellulose and nanocellulose, which can be used for the development of biodegradable packaging materials, that have been successfully tested in the IATA-CSIC laboratory.
New extraction processes lead to more sustainable packaging.
In the industry, highly purified agar extracts are mainly used, which is associated with a high consumption of chemicals. If the cleaning steps are reduced, not only does the consumption of chemicals decrease: products with new properties are also created, since proteins or polyphenolic compounds remain in the raw materials.
Less purified G. sesquiped agar extracts thus have additional functions, such as antioxidant and antimicrobial properties, which make them interesting for several food applications: plastic films, made from these extracts, release bioactive substances and can thus contribute to preserving food, for example, slowing the deterioration of fruit.
In addition, these leaves can remove one of the main obstacles to using agar in the food packaging industry: they are much more resistant to moisture than leaves made with highly purified agar.
Bioplastics from unwanted algae residues – sometimes better than those made from oil
A good possibility of recycling is also emerging for the residues of the Mediterranean Neptune grass (Posidonia oceanica). This plant sometimes accumulates en masse on the beaches, which has negative effects on tourism and high costs of final destination for the affected communities.
However, the ingredients of this Posidonia residue have great potential for the development of biodegradable packaging, which is also supported by a proprietary patent: They are an excellent source of so-called lignocellulose. As an additive in the manufacture of starch-based bioplastics, it leads to a significant improvement in mechanical properties.
Posidonia cellulose can also be added to conventional plastics to improve several important food packaging functions, such as gas and water vapor barriers and thermal or mechanical properties. Along with a variety of bioactive substances in Posidonia extracts, which have a high antioxidant capacity, these properties also help to keep food fresher for longer.
BIOCARB-4-FOOD is coordinated by Dr. Amparo Lopez-Rubio of the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology, IATA-CSIC) of Spain. Other partners are Teagasc, the Irish Agency for Agriculture and Food Development, the Norwegian research institute Nofima and the Swedish network of research centers RISE. The Bioeconomics Research Center at the University of Hohenheim took over the communication.
BIOCARB-4-FOOD, an ERA-NET SusFood2 project, has a budget of one million euros and runs from September 2018 to September 2021.
More information
BIOCARB-4-FOOD home page: https: //www.biocarb4food.eu SUSFOOD: https: //susfood-db-era.net/main/content/biocarb-4-food
Source: University of Hohenheim
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