Ingredient valorization of reOat – the fiber-rich residue from oat beverage production

Purpose and goal:

The project aims to take plant-based food production to the next level by developing ingredients based on extrusion, fermentation, physical and chemical processing. Our goal is to recycle residual side streams from plant-based beverage production into high-value food ingredients with optimized nutritional profile and sensory quality and subsequently commercialize new and circular high-value food ingredients to the global market and create a brighter and more sustainable future.

Expected results and effects:

Oat drink producers needs to pay to get rid of their waste streams, turning them into valuable food ingredients and products can increase both climate sustainability and profitability. As the global market for plant-based dairy products is growing rapidly, the project also aim to develop a scalable infrastructure. By developing these ingredients that can be easily formulated into competitive products and reaching the market, consumers will be able to access a more nutritionally optimized vegetarian range of products.

Approach and implementation:

The project begins by characterizing the physical, functional, and nutritional properties of the reOat sidestream before and after processing, across batches, and relating them to health aspects and regulations. It will explore improvements in taste, technical properties, microbiological status, and nutrition through various processing techniques. The ingredient(s) will be tested in bakery, extrusion, formulation, and fermentation.

Conditions for industrialization and commercialization will also be reviewed to assess the market potential of reOat as a food ingredient.