Even if an extruder is the most suitable equipment you can make your own kitchen Smat using a heated meat grinder. Click on the film for an instruction. You will need the following ingredients:

• 60g hemp and pea protein plus oat fibre
• 0.4 cup water
• A pinch of salt

NucleoDry is a unique consortium with expertise ranging from gene therapy development and researh (VIVAC group, Karolinska Institutet, KI) via hospital practice and GMP adaption (Vecura) and formulation development and optimization (RISE) to GMP manufacturing and upscaling (NorthXBio). Together these partners are working on improved collaboration for the benefit of future gene therapy development and manufacturing in Sweden as well as the exploration of dry vaccines with improved storage properties.

Majority of mRNA vaccines developed during the pandemic are formulated in lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to enhance stability as well as cellular uptake and transfection. This is a complex formulation with demanding storage conditions of -80 to -20 °C putting high demands on distribution chains and storage facilities. Despite demanding storage condition, the shelf-life of the products are relatively short, approximately 6 months. The stability and storage of these products is therefore a major challenge for their availability world-wide. One route to increasing the shelf-life of biological modalities is removing water and obtaining a dry formulation where water is not present to facilitate chemical reactions and alterations. The decreased reactivity of the dry formulation can result in both prolonged shelf-life and increase the possible storage temperature.

There are several techniques for drying formulations. NucleoDry is exploring one option for more stable gene therapies with milder storage demands, lyophilization. Removing water through freeze drying is a gentle method that has been successful for many biological modalities. In the case of vaccines formulated in LNPs it poses several interesting research and development questions:

• Water is an integrated part of LNPs, what happens to the micro and nanostructure of the formulation upon drying?
• What happens to the integrity of the LNPs?
• Can we control how the LNPs are affected by tuning the drying process, or using cryoprotectants or other additives?
• How are the LNPs behaving in a rehydration process?
• Can it be affected by the method of rehydration?
• How is the activity in vitro affected by drying and rehydration?
• How does lyophilization affect product stability for mRNA vaccines?
• How does lyophilization affect storage climate?
• How is the activity in vivo affected by drying and rehydration?

Within NucleoDry mRNA is delivered from the VIVAC group at KI to the formulation unit at RISE. There the nucleotides are formulated in lipid nanoparticles using a microfluidic chip. The formulations are subsequently freeze dried and both wet, dried and resuspended formulations are analyzed for size, z-potential, encapsulation efficiency, cryo-TEM, LRSI x-rays, transfection in cells and mice in collaboration between RISE and KI. Vecura and NorthXBio performs initial evaluations of GMP adaptability of small-scale manufacturing and a plan for upscaling and GMP manufacturing for later clinical stages. These results can be used by other initiatives with the goal of gene therapy development and commercialization, within Sweden and abroad.

NucleoDry’s web page is a part of ri.se, to find out more about RISE, click on the black menu above.

Syfte och mål

Projektets mål är att förbättra lönsamheten i storskaliga vallbioraffinaderier genom att producera single cell protein (SCP) från restströmmar som återstår efter utvinning av protein för enkelmagade djur. I ett sådant bioraffinaderi produceras grönt protein för enkelmagade djur från den flytande fraktionen efter pressning men potential finns att ta fram produkter med högt förädlingsvärde från presskakan samt andra rester för att förbättra utnyttjandet och föra vallbioraffinaderiet närmare kommersialisering. 

Utmaningar och möjligheter

En utmaning som har lyfts är att det visat sig svårt att få till lönsamheten i dessa typer av anläggningar till följd av att nyttjandegraden blir låg om de endast drivs under sommarhalvåret då färsk vall finns tillgänglig. Tanken är därför att utnyttja anläggningen under vinterhalvåret för SCP-produktion. Ett mål med produktion av vallprotein är att kunna ersätta sojaprotein, men slutsatsen var att för att nå lönsamhet då proteinkoncentratet ersätter GMO-fri konventionell soja krävs såväl drift året runt som lägre pris/råvarukostnad för vallen. Det finns ett starkt intresse för att använda restströmmar som odlingssubstrat för SCP då de förväntas bidra till en cirkulär ekonomi och lägre kostnader. SCP har stor potential för användning som foderråvara, det protein som produceras har i försök visat sig kunna ersätta soja i foder till fisk och enkelmagade djur. Marknadspotentialen är stor då det finns en strävan efter att ersätta både sojaprotein och fiskmjöl i djurfoder med mer hållbara alternativ.

Genomförande

Inom projektet vill vi i labförsök producera SCP från den brunjuice som är en restström från vallproteinproduktion. Dessutom ska presskakan från den proteinutvinningen ensileras och pressas igen för att använda även pressjuicen för att odla SCP på. 

Mål

Projektets mål är att utvärdera SCP produktion från brunjuice från färsk vall och pressvätska från ensilerad fiberfraktion med avseende på utbyte och kvalitet.

BIOMETHAVERSE is the short name for the project "Demonstrating and connecting production innovations in the BIOMETHAne uniVERSE."

Five innovative technologies for producing biomethane will be demonstrated in five European countries: France, Greece, Italy, Sweden, and Ukraine. The production pathways to be demonstrated include one or more of the following conversion processes: thermochemical, biochemical, electrochemical, and biological.

Four of the demonstration plants will be based on biogas from conventional anaerobic digestion, while the Swedish demonstration plant built by RISE will be based on syngas from biomass gasification through Ex-situ syngas biological methanation (ESB). In all demo plants within BIOMETHAVERSE, CO2 and other intermediate products from anaerobic digestion or gasification will be combined with renewable hydrogen or electricity to increase biomethane yield. All production pathways demonstrated are non-conventional technologies, use energy and materials in a circular manner, and aim to increase biomethane production and reduce production costs.

RISE coordinates the Swedish parties in the project and contributes, together with Wärtsilä, to the design, construction, and operation of the mobile testbed for biological methanation of syngas. Cortus is the syngas producer and host for the pilot trials and receives applied research on possible syngas utilization in return. The Swedish Gas Association contributes with work on policy development in the area related to the project.

Ex-situ syngas biological methanation (ESB) is an innovative technology for biomethane production. Forest residual products such as branches, sawdust, and recycled wood are carbon sources that are not available for biomethane production with traditional digestion techniques. If the forest residual products are first gasified to syngas, they can then be further processed into biomethane through biological methanation – a type of gas digestion technique. The ESB technology thus opens the door to using forest residual products and other solid biomass as substrates for biomethane production. This significantly increases Sweden's and Europe's potential for biomethane production.

BIOMETHAVERSE aims to:

• Demonstrate increased cost-effectiveness and innovative biomethane production.
• Increase sustainability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from biomethane production.
• Ensure scalability and replicability of the demonstrated production technologies.
• Develop policy recommendations and ensure that the new technologies are adopted by the market.

The project also aims to increase the production potential for biomethane by 66%, create 294,000 green jobs, enable reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 113 million tons, and reduce the production cost of biomethane by the target year 2030.

RISE's cutting-edge expertise in food technology, process technology and product development combined with the facility's process equipment and analysis and characterization resources creates a large-scale and multidisciplinary environment for both improving existing manufacturing and developing new products.

In addition to process technology, RISE has broad expertise in sensory and consumer science, aroma chemistry, structure and texture, nutrition and microbiology, which enables comprehensive support throughout product development.

Food processing techniques

Extraction & separation

• Wet extraction of protein, starch, fiber and fat

• Separating systems such as decanter centrifuge for separation of particles from liquid fractions.

• Super critical CO2 extraction (for volatile components such fats for antioxidants)

Drying

• Spray drying

• Freezing drying

Wet and dry extrusion

• Double and single screw extruders

Dry mixing

· Blender

Homogenization

· Homogenisor

Baking equipment

· Proving cabinet

· Rotating oven

· Dough blender

· Rolling pin machine

Charkuterie manufacturing

· Bowl chopper

· Meat grinder

· Sausage manufacturing

Heat and separation techniques

· Specially designed microwave oven drying and heating with online control measurements

· PEF - Pulsed Electric Field

· Ultra sound equipment

Collaboration

The facility is used for commissioned research, contract testing and joint R&D projects. Both shorter tests and longer development projects are possible.

Contact us for further dialogue about how our expert team can help you go from idea to market-adapted solution.

NGS, the latest technology for sequencing both DNA and RNA, is a powerful tool that has changed the field of molecular biology. NGS technology has a variety of advantages over traditional DNA/RNA sequencing, including high speed, reliability, sensitivity, high coverage, parallel sequencing, multiplexing, and accessibility. These advantages make it possible to generate high-quality sequencing data and enable research in ways that were not possible before.

At RISE, we can help manage the entire process from sample preparation to library building, sequencing, and data analysis. Together with you, we develop customized protocols and methodology to optimize NGS technology for cost-effectiveness and the highest performance possible. We have a powerful and flexible NGS instrument; the NextSeq2000 from Illumina, which can be used for most NGS applications.

Aim

By measuring sensory, instrumental (e.g. microstructure and texture) and behavioral aspects of meat analogs (prototypes) with varying amounts and types of fat, the project aimed at contributing to increased understanding of how fat can influence acceptance and taste experiences of meat analogs in a positive direction, which is an important step in the development of sustainable and tasty plant-based protein products that can replace meat.

Challanges

The vegetable fats used in many meat analogues today are largely unsaturated fats, compared to the fats in land-based animals. Unsaturated fats generally have health benefits over saturated fats, but also have different sensory properties than saturated fats, as they are usually not solid in warm foods. It is well known that fat can affect the sensory experience of meat. However, less is known about how fat content and fat quality affect the acceptance and sensory experience of meat analogues.

A common method of making liquid vegetable fats more solid is so-called hydrogenation. When hydrogenated, however, the healthy properties of the originally unsaturated vegetable fatty acids disappear, because they are then converted into saturated fatty acids by the addition of hydrogen. An interesting alternative to hydration, to create vegetable fats that are more solid at room temperature, are so-called oleogels. With oleogels, you can create gel-like fats, while maintaining the degree of unsaturation of the vegetable fats.

In the manufacture of certain plant-based meat analogues, the protein undergoes a so-called texturing, for example through extrusion, with the aim of creating a meat-like structure of the plant-based proteins. Usually, the fat in meat analogues is added after this process, i.e. after the protein structure has been formed. This can cause the fat in the final product to leak out during storage and cooking. Possibly this problem can be avoided if the fat is added before texturing, thus becoming more integrated into the product.

Consumers may have different expectations of how a food should behave during cooking, for example how well it retains its color and shape and how it behaves when additional ingredients or flavorings are added. Expectations may affect the overall acceptance of meat analogues. It is therefore relevant to study more closely consumers' experiences of cooking meat analogues, and to understand how these experiences can be improved from a product design perspective.

Solution

In this project we:

• Studied how different types and levels of vegetable fats affect the sensory profile and acceptability of commercially available plant-based meat analogues.
• Developed prototypes of meat analogues using different fat sources, including oleogels, where the fat is added before and after texturing.
• Evaluated the produced prototypes sensory using a trained panel.
• Measure and study the prototypes' physiochemical properties (e.g. microstructure and texture) instrumentally, which helps to explain the sensory experience and facilitate future product development.
• Qualitatively evaluated of how well the prototypes work and meet consumer expectations when cooking.

Publications 

Collier, E.S., van Huyssteen, G., Krona, A., Harris, K.L., Ahlinder, A., Normann, A., Bendtsen, M., Eckardt, J., 2025. “It’s not bad, but it’s not chicken”: Sensorial drivers of liking and their correlates for plant-based chicken analogues in Sweden. International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science 41, 101229. 

Ahlinder, A., Lorén, N., Hemeryck, A., Lindroth, S., Altskär, A., Krona, A., Eckardt, J., 2026. The influence of wax-based oleogelators on microstructure evolution, rheology and diffusion. Food Hydrocolloids 171, 111739. 

Intake of food that cause low blood sugar response after a meal can led to a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Researchers and the food industry therefore have an important role in developing and providing appetizing foods that help consumers maintain adequate blood sugar levels, preferably in combination with a sustainable solution for the planet.

Previous research has shown that a certain whole grain product, produced in small scale, reduce the blood sugar response, not only at the meal they eat, but also at subsequent meals. In the project, an industrial version of the whole grain product will be evaluated. The product's microstructure and nutrient content before and after production, as well as how it is affected in simulated digestion, will be analysed to understand how the industrial process affects the product. The results will be linked to the effects on blood sugar measured in a human study.

To gather facts about the product from a sustainability perspective, a life cycle assessment of the product will be compiled, in which the product is also compared to other foods. It is also important to relate the sustainability aspect to the product's nutritional content.

The project's common, long-term goal is to provide consumers with attractive and sustainable ready-to-eat products with documented health benefits in terms of regulating blood sugar, and thus contribute to the prevention of type 2 diabetes.

Without access to the right testing environments and expertise, promising innovations risk remaining in the development stage. The green transition is happening now, and companies that cannot scale up quickly risk losing their technological edge. 

With Bioeconomy Arena, RISE offers access to facilities, researchers and methods, from laboratory scale to pilot plant. This means an idea can be tested, verified and scaled up within the same network without the company needing to build its own infrastructure. 

This is what Bioeconomy Arena offers

A wide range of technical infrastructure

Bioeconomy Arena offers a wide range of technical infrastructure and RISE’s state-of-the-art laboratories and research facilities cover a broad spectrum of disciplines. Whether you are interested in chemicals, food, materials or biofuels, we can offer comprehensive solutions for all types of development needs within the bioeconomy. 

End-to-end support for upscaling 

Through Bioeconomy Arena, RISE is a one-stop shop for transforming new ideas into scalable, effective solutions. We provide the infrastructure and expertise needed to validate and develop new bio-based processes, offering a seamless journey from concept to commercialisation. In addition to our technical expertise, we also offer knowledge in techno-economics and life cycle assessment (LCA). 

Collaborate and scale up with our experts 

Our team of experienced experts are committed to supporting your development journey. You will collaborate with researchers and engineers who will bring solid, industry-relevant knowledge and experience to every stage of the process. Scale up faster through close collaboration and access to our expertise. Together, we can overcome challenges and pave the way for success. 

How does it work? 

A collaboration begins with an initial, free meeting, during which RISE will assess your needs and suggest relevant facilities and experts. We then draw up a project plan with you, setting clear milestones from testing to a scalable solution.