Potato Review

www.potatoreview.com POTATO REVIEW JULY/AUGUST 2021 39 FOOD ALTERNATIVES A GRITECH R&D business B-Hive Innovations has developed a new process that will extract food-grade functional protein from potatoes. Following extensive research, the extraction process will be put into practice at a new £6m protein plant facility, where construction recently started at national potato supplier Branston’s headquarters in Lincolnshire. e commercial factory will include bespoke technologies and capabilities to meet the growing demand for UK-grown, plant-based food ingredients. B-Hive will work alongside Branston to deliver the facility as part of a collaborative project to improve potato crop utilisation. e factory will be the rst of its kind in the UK, converting potatoes into clean-label functional protein, which has applications in vegetarian and vegan foods. A starch-based co-product will also be generated, with the potential to create a range of applications. R&D Project Manager at B-Hive Innovations, Alison Wright, said: “We established the process following years of research resulting in gentle extraction of food-grade functional protein that is free from allergens. Our work has been made possible by the support of collaborative partners and funding from Innovate UK, which we are incredibly grateful for. “Consumers are aware of the healthy bre and starch content in potatoes, but they don’t always consider the protein fraction. Market research revealed there was a growing demand for UK-grown, clean-label, 100% A UK first in protein extraction Companies collaborate to develop process that will convert potatoes into clean-label protein. plant-based ingredients, highlighting a commercial need that tted perfectly with Branston’s drive to utilise all harvested crop.” e project is being headed up by the newly appointed managing director of the Branston’s Prepared Foods division, Richard Fell, as a key part of his focus on transforming the Prepared business. Richard said: “We’re delighted to be working with B-hive Innovations on this new venture. Most people are aware of potato starch and bre in potatoes, but they don’t consider the highly nutritious protein fraction.” “B-hive Innovations has been honing this technology for a number of years, working with a group of academic and industry partners and supported by Innovate UK. ey have developed a process to gently extract and isolate high-grade proteins from potatoes. is means we have the potential to meet the growing requirements from food manufacturers for 100% plant-based protein that is free from allergens and is fully traceable from our UK grown crops.” Innovate UK helps business develop new products, services and processes that they need to grow through innovation. eir drive towards net-zero provides funding opportunities in multiple areas including transforming food production and improving agricultural supply-chains. Managing Director at B-Hive Innovations, Vidyanath (Vee) Gururajan, said: “We’re delighted to have developed a process to support sustainability and crop utilisation for the potato industry. We are very grateful to the Innovate UK funding during the initial stages of the project and the partners who have continued to work with us in scaling up this project from concept to commercialisation.” “Consumers are aware of the healthy fibre and starch content in potatoes, but they don’t always consider the protein fraction.” Alison Wright, R&D Project Manager at B-Hive Innovations