The Eurecat technology centre is taking part in the Cervera Network of Excellence OPTIPROT project, coordinated by AZTI, which seeks to furnish the food industry with tools to find the best combination of protein sources and shift towards a healthy and sustainable food system.
AZTI, the project’s coordinador, together with the technology centres Eurecat, AINIA, ANFACO and CNTA, make up this Network financed by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, the CDTI and the European Union through NextGeneration/Recovery, Transformation and Relisience Plan funds until Juny 2025.
“We are looking to promote the application of what are known as omic technologies to add to our knowledge about conventional animal and plant origin proteins, unpack existing alternatives and accurately and effectively investigate their impact on health,” says Núria Canela, director of the Centre for Omic Sciences, a joint unit run by Eurecat and Rovira i Virgili University.
OPTIPROT is taking a new comprehensive approach which factors in the challenges involved in the food protein transition including sustainable processes such as fermentation, the impact on health and consumer requirements.
This strategic plan is anchored in harnessing proteins including both new sources and other commonly used ones which are combined to generate foodstuffs whose health properties will be validated by omic technologies.
