WASHINGTON and BRUSSELS — With sustainable, alternative ingredients and proteins proliferating in many markets, including pet food, the Precision Fermentation Alliance (PFA) and Food Fermentation Europe (FFE) have announced a new definition for “precision fermentation.” According to the associations, the collaborative definition aims to provide clarity on the characteristics of precision fermentation and its difference from other alternative production methods.
The final definition is, “Precision fermentation combines the traditional fermentation process with the latest developments in biotechnology to efficiently produce a compound of interest, such as a protein flavor molecule, vitamin, pigment or fat. “
Diving deeper, PFA and FFE detail the precision fermentation process under this new definition. A specific molecular sequence, derived from digital databases and not taken directly from plants or animals, is inserted into a microorganism to produce the desired molecule when fermented. Once fermentation is complete, the compounds are separated from the microorganisms, leaving the desired product.
According to PFA and FFE, precision fermentation has been used worldwide for more than 30 years to develop medicines and common food ingredients.
“With so many new food technologies entering the market, we recognized the need to refine and expand the definition of precision fermentation to help educate consumers and food industry stakeholders,” said Irina Gerry, PFA spokesperson. “Our collaboration with FFE has resulted in a comprehensive definition that emphasizes the unique features of precision fermentation and its applications, as well as drawing clear boundaries between precision fermentation and other technologies based on fermentation.”
The new definition also highlights several aspects of precision fermentation, including:
- Use of bioengineering, which is not used in traditional or wild fermentation and natural breeding methods;
- Production of specific compounds, rather than growing a whole cell or biomass relative to cell cultivation;
- Sourcing from digital databases, eliminates the need for any animal involvement, which is different from cultivated protein production where cells are taken from a living animal;
- Filtering compounds, which are different from biomass fermentation where the whole biomass is the product;
- And the use of established technology, which, according to PFA and FFE, has been used safely in food and medicine for decades.
“While some applications of precision fermentation may be new, the technology itself has been safely used in food and medicine such as insulin production for over 30 years,” said Jevan Nagarajah, president of FFE. “We are excited to contribute to the understanding of precision fermentation and its role in advancing food innovation.”
According to the associations, understanding precision fermentation and providing education on its process is essential to the transition to more sustainable food systems. In the pet food and treat industry, a lot of work has already started in this space. For example, biotechnology startup Paleo recently had success with its myoglobin palatant developed using precision fermentation, and Corbion debuted its new fish oil alternative for pet food created through precision fermentation.
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