A European consortium has secured €6.99 million to scale the production of microbial proteins from food industry waste, in one of the most ambitious fermentation-focused funding awards of the year.
The grant comes from the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking and supports PROSCALE, a four-year Innovation Action running from September 2026 to August 2030. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland leads the project, with 15 additional partners spanning research institutions, food companies, and biotech firms across Europe.
The biological core of PROSCALE is single-cell protein production. Fungi, yeast, and bacteria are cultivated through continuous fermentation on sidestreams from potato, wheat, and vegetable processing, as well as residues from baking and pasta manufacture. The microorganisms convert those low-value inputs into protein-dense biomass, targeting ingredients with more than 50% protein on a dry matter basis.
Intended applications include meat and dairy alternatives, sports nutrition, and functional foods, as well as everyday staples like bread and pasta.
Part of the funded work will address a core technical hurdle: food sidestreams often contain compounds that inhibit microbial growth. The project will develop methods to neutralise those inhibitors and optimise feedstock formulations for consistent fermentation performance.
The consortium has set ambitious environmental benchmarks, targeting a 60% cut in greenhouse gas emissions and water use relative to conventional protein production, alongside a tenfold increase in fermenter capacity.
VTT’s Nesli Sozer, the project coordinator, called the funding a strong signal of the initiative’s scientific and strategic relevance. PROSCALE has also received the European Commission’s STEP Seal, recognising its importance to European technological sovereignty and food security.
