New Vegan Proteins from Microorganisms – Challenges in Quality Control and Product Development
Prof. Dr. Thomas Kurz & Laura Herz, ProteinDistillery GmbH
ProteinDistillery GmbH is a start-up which produces vegan proteins from microorganisms, especially from yeast, for the use in the plant-based food industry. These proteins show extraordinary functionalities comparable to egg white protein. Quality control along the production process and product development is crucial for the success of the product: Particle size analysis of the powders, DSC to understand the denaturation behaviour and nativity of the protein, rheology to characterise the intrinsic viscosity of protein solutions and their gelation behaviour upon heating. All this information will help to standardize the functional properties of the product and understand its benefits for the customers.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Kurz
- Dipl.-Ing Brewing and Beverage Technology TU München
- Dr.-Ing. Bioprocess Engineering TU München
- Professor for Food Process Engineering Berlin
- Different positions in R/D and operations in the food industry
- Co-Founder ProteinDistillery GmbH
Laura Herz
- Master in Food Science and Engineering from University of Hohenheim
- 3 years research assistant at Nestle Research Center in Lausanne with focus on plant proteins and development of plant-based alternatives
- ProteinDistillery since November, development of microbial protein and their applications