Today, the aquafeed industry faces a huge protein supply gap. The European aquafeed industry, in particular, imports over half of the protein used in their products. Skretting (with their mother company, Nutreco), a Norwegian company and the largest aquafeed producer in the world, has set a clear goal to reduce 58% of their supply chain carbon footprint by 2030. Therefore, novel and low-footprint proteins are urgently needed.

Objectives

• Develop a zero-emission process integrating thermochemical (pyrolysis) and biological (fermentation) steps;
• Scale up single-cell protein production to pilot scale;
• Investigate the suitability of the single-cell proteins and biochar for aquaculture and agriculture feed;
• Quantify carbon storage and use, assess environmental impacts and analyse the life cycle for the entire value chain – from forestry to feed production;
• Disseminate results to stakeholders, raise public awareness and develop a business plan for market entry.

More specifically, the project has developed processes to produce butanediol from forest-based residual streams from the pulp and sawmill industry that can contribute to sustainable production and reduced use of fossil-based raw materials.

The platform chemical butanediol has many different applications and can be used for further production of polyesters, paints and varnishes, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, in the food and beverage industry and elasticising chemicals. The production of butanediol is currently mainly based on fossil-based chemical processes. By using forest-based biomass as residual streams from the pulp and sawmill industry in the form of fibre rejects, lignin and sawdust, the use and value of these residual streams, which are currently only burned for their energy value, increases. The project also contributed to increasing sustainable production and consumption and reducing the use of fossil-based raw materials.

RISE's role in the project was to further process lignocellulose with the help of microorganisms into butanediol. Using a high-throughput facility, a diverse collection of microorganisms, and its knowledge base, RISE identified potential microorganisms for the process. A fermentation process for the efficient conversion of fiber sludge and sawdust into butanediol was developed at RISE’s fermentation facility. RISE also contributed its expertise in chemistry to achieve optimal recovery and purity of the product. The overall process for producing butanediol from forest residues was identified and optimized with a view to scaling up to industrial level.

VINNOVA, the Swedish Innovation Agency, granted 3.9 million SEK funding to the ProMultiFilms project (with 8.1 million SEK total project budget) — an ambitious and pioneering initiative that aims to revolutionize high-performing, fiber-based packaging. This exciting endeavor brings together distinguished industry leaders such as Stora Enso, Bioextrax, Hoting Innovations, and the Swedish state-owned research institute, RISE. Together, this formidable research and development consortium is deeply committed to addressing key challenges and driving the advancement of biobased barrier films for sustainable packaging and reducing the need for plastic-based packaging materials.

Aligned with the European strategy of phasing out single-use plastics by 2030, the main objective of the ProMultiFilms project is to develop high-performance, biobased multi-layer barrier films for fiber-based packaging. By leveraging the combined expertise and resources of the industry leaders and RISE, the project aims to generate groundbreaking knowledge and overcome technical hurdles in the production and processing of biobased barrier films. Advanced biobased barrier films will revolutionize fiber-based packaging use, for example within food industry where solid barrier properties are critical.

The collaborative efforts of the ProMultiFilms project will specifically address four key challenges within the value chain: identifying and modifying biobased raw materials, integrating innovative processes for producing multi-layered biobased high barrier films, application, and verification of films onto fiber-based packaging, and ensuring the utmost recyclability and compostability of the packaging. The ProMultiFilms project is a golden opportunity for the industry to spearhead the development of biobased barrier film and multilayer alternatives that can rival plastics in terms of both cost-effectiveness and performance. 

The byproduct in the production of rapeseed oil is a rapeseed press cake, currently used as animal feed. As the press cake contains high levels of protein and nutrients, it could be processed to serve a more beneficial purpose as a food ingredient. However, the cake has a bitter taste and contains components that impede the absorption of nutrients. The project aims to find efficient and sustainable methods to treat the rapeseed press cake, eliminate its negative properties, and evaluate how different techniques affect its functionality in food production.

By ensuring that the press cake remains within the food system, we increase its sustainability, contribute to food self-sufficiency in Sweden, and create a potentially sought-after export product. RISE is collaborating with Skeby Gårdar and Linnaeus University in this three-year project, funded by Formas.

To order a wood facade of reclaimed wood is challenging today since technical function, environmental impact, price and appearance are equally important. What should the requirements be in the future? More knowledge and experience are required to ensure confidence for the purchasers and users of products from reclaimed wood.

This project will study the entire process in the value chain: collecting, sorting, and handling of side-stream solid wood from e.g., sawing, and residual solid wood from demolition into a high-quality component as part of a wooden facade system. Comparison with virgin material will be performed by automating the process of categorizing the properties of the recovered material using non-destructive scanning techniques and machine learning (AI) models. 

The aim is to develop an innovative manufactured "hybrid material" and at the same time study process flow parameters, calculate LCA, material flow costs, and market potential of a proposed new supply chain, as well as the development of new designs of the value chain. The new process flow includes collecting the rest products, sorting, and determining their quality with a scanner, and then manufacturing facade prototypes which are evaluated to assess if they meet the set requirements. The requirements are analyzed together with the parties in the project, several of whom are future