It looks like the creation of artificial food is a trend that will gain more traction over the coming years. For example, we recently reported that the United States has approved the production of artificial meat. But in Finland they decided to go further and came up with a technology thanks to which food can be created literally out of thin air. You will need, however, more water and electricity, but it still sounds fantastic.
Finnish company Solar Foods is going to start production next month and, as reported, in the first phase they will be able to produce about a kilogram of food per day. How is it?
In fact, everything is quite simple: specialists use ordinary water to carry out an electrolysis reaction in order to obtain hydrogen. At this time, special filters emit carbon dioxide and a small amount of auxiliary elements from the air. Further, all the components obtained are used to feed special bacteria, which do not need anything else to maintain their vital activity. Thanks to this, the bacteria colony grows. Some of them can be taken for further synthesis, while the other part is heat treated. The bacteria themselves have up to 60% protein and amino acid composition, similar to soybeans and algae. The output is a fine powder, similar in appearance and consistency to milk powder.
The first plant cost the company 1 million euros and is located in the suburbs of Helsinki. In addition, for the first pilot plant, Solar Foods provided 100% renewable electricity from hydropower sourced from Fortum.
Mass production and first commercial deals are planned for 2021. It all depends on how quickly Solar Foods gets approval from the European Food Administration (EFA).
Vladimir Kuznetsov
