TFTAK has launched a project to address challenges in sustainable food production through advanced strain optimization and develop a novel technology. Starting in October 2024 and running for three years, the project aims to improve strain development efficiency and reduce costs, making specialty food ingredients more sustainable and competitive.
As the global population continues to grow, the demand for food, particularly animal protein, is expected to rise by 80% by 2050. Current food production methods are unsustainable, as they contribute to emissions and deplete resources like land and water. The need for healthier, more sustainable, and natural food ingredients has never been more pressing.
One promising solution to address these challenges is precision fermentation, a technique that uses microorganisms to produce natural compounds from renewable resources. Unlike traditional agricultural methods, precision fermentation requires significantly less land and water, making it a more sustainable alternative. However, the widespread adoption of precision fermentation faces three main challenges: cost, strain development efficiency, and intellectual property barriers.
TFTAK has launched a project aimed at addressing these challenges through an innovative approach that transforms the strain optimization process.Â
The project’s goal is to significantly reduce the time and costs associated with strain development while uncovering new solutions for producing specialty food ingredients.
TFTAK plans to develop an advanced technology that will introduce a novel strain screening method that allows "stacking" metabolic changes on a genome-wide level, enabling high-throughput parallel screening of strain engineering combinations. This breakthrough is expected to have the potential to expand the screening space by up to 100,000 times compared to current methods, thereby facilitating the discovery of unique strain optimization solutions.
During the new project we will apply this new technology to produce natural colorants by fermenting yeast so that we can replace chemically synthesized colorants still commonly used as food ingredients.
By utilizing TFTAK’s technology, strain development timelines can be reduced from the typical 3-5 years to just 1-3 years, and the costs can be lowered significantly, making the production of specialty food ingredients more competitive with traditional ingredients. Furthermore, TFTAK’s solution could help companies navigate IP challenges in the field, enabling the discovery of new strain engineering targets while circumventing existing patents.
In conclusion, TFTAK’s precision fermentation technology promises to deliver a sustainable and commercially viable solution for producing specialty food ingredients. Our end goal is to develop more sustainable and healthy food products for everyone to enjoy.
Our research team has already commenced its work. We wish them success and hope that this will lead us to the desired results. Many thanks to EIS for supporting this project!
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