Mycorena and Revo Foods develop 3D printable Mycoprotein for vegan seafood alternatives
Meat and seafood alternatives are gaining increased traction from consumers . However , the most attractive options such as whole cut steak or fish fillet are still difficult to produce . 3D food printing is seen as the most promising technology for producing these high-value products . Healthy vegan ingredients , such as mycoprotein , are of main interest for the production of whole cut alternatives due to their inherent fibrous behaviour . This fibrous behaviour could however be limiting for certain processing methods such as 3D food printing .
Now , the Swedish Mycoprotein pioneer Mycorena and the Austrian 3D food printing pioneer Revo Foods have started a research collaboration to explore the suitability of Mycorena ’ s previously developed and adapted mycoprotein , better suitable for 3D food printing , with a special focus on vegan alternatives for seafood and whole cut products . Combining the meat-like properties of mycoprotein with the unrestricted shaping possibilities of 3D food printing , a whole new realistic meat-like product segment can be created . The aim is to significantly narrow the gap between animal products and plant-based or vegan alternatives , leading to wider adoption of meat alternatives in the market . Like Mycorena ’ s current mycoprotein ingredient Promyc , the printable mycoprotein will have a soft fibrous texture , light colour and neutral taste , making it an excellent option for meat analogues , especially seafood alternatives .
“ We have always been interested in food 3D printing and saw that creating a printable mycelium material would probably open doors to creating amazing , unique products . With this technology ,
74 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk the possibilities for texture and form are on another level compared to current meat analogues , being restricted only by imagination , not processing methods ,” says Paulo Teixeira , CIO at Mycorena .
Revo Foods is an Austrian company developing new food processing technologies for high-quality plantbased seafood products , including 3D food printing . Some of the company ’ s first products include salmon and tuna alternatives and are already sold in more than 3000 locations across Europe , making Revo Foods one of the leaders in plant-based seafood . This makes Revo Foods an ideal partner for Mycorena to bring its innovation to the market at the fastest possible pace . In a collaborative project , Revo Foods and Mycorena will explore the use of mycoprotein for 3D food printing to develop new seafood alternatives .
“ Mycoprotein is a very interesting ingredient for vegan seafood alternatives , however , we were previously limited in using it in our proprietary 3D food printing process as the fibrous behaviour was altered . With this new collaboration with Mycorena , we see huge potential to develop the printable mycoprotein further , which can lift meat / seafood alternatives to the next quality level , necessary for large-scale consumer adoption ,” says Robin Simsa , CEO at Revo Foods .
The superior advantage of food 3D printing compared to the more traditional production methods , such as extrusion or moulding , is the creation of complex products with much more realistic sensory properties and mouthfeel . This eliminates the need for expensive tooling and can reduce storage space and time by being able to produce on demand instead of batchwise . One common limitation of the technique is related to the material selection as printers often only can print paste or mixtures with the right fluidity , making printed products with a fibrous texture , such as Promyc , an extremely promising ingredient for food producers .
“ We are very excited to finally reveal our collaboration with Revo Foods . We believe we will create some truly unique products here , making it easy for consumers to enjoy delicious seafood in a healthy and sustainable way ,’’ says Kristina Karlsson , R & D Manager at Mycorena .
3D Food Printing and mycoprotein are both hot trends in FoodTech , as a technique and material on their own , making the combination of the two a brand-new field of development which is yet to be properly explored in the sector of alternative protein .
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