In the light of the current EU goals for establishing a circular economy and clean technologies, we will demonstrate in the project LIFE for Acid Whey several innovative approaches for further whey processing. The primary focus will be on demonstrating the separation process of individual whey proteins (e.g., lactoferrin). In pilot experiments, we will also test other possibilities of beneficial use of acid whey, such as the production of dairy starter cultures, the production of vitamins, the separation of residual lactose, lactate and whey proteins, and the production of energy. The dairy industry, with the constant growth of cow’s milk production, is one of the primary sources of industrial discharges. When processing milk into cheese and cottage cheese, the yield is around 10%, while the remaining 90% is whey. Also, only a certain portion, in particular, sweet whey from cheese production, is further processed. Acid whey, which remains after the manufacture of curd, is often considered as waste. With the increasing production of milk and traditional dairy products, the competition in the dairy market is also increasing. Therefore, to enhance the competitiveness of dairies, continuous investments in the modernisation of production are necessary, with the aim of offering new products and optimising costs in the area of wastewater treatment and energy consumption. Waste whey offers great potential in this field as it represents a significant source of highly searched proteins in the market of dietary supplements and other applications mentioned above. Some whey proteins, represented in lower concentrations, are not only the source of amino acids but are important regulatory factors with a broad biological role (e.g. antimicrobial and ant-inflammatory activity) or so-called functional proteins. They can be isolated from liquid whey by advanced separation technologies. In the project, we will use the innovative technology of short monolithic chromatographic columns, which allow high separation flow rates, excellent separation efficiency and therefore high product purity and better preservation of protein bioactivity compared to other approaches.
Applicant: ARHEL projektiranje in inženiring d.o.o.
Partner: Institute of Dairy Science and Probiotics (IM-PRO), University of Ljubljana
Co-financer: European Commission (LIFE)
Total budget: 4,439,001 €
EU contribution: 2,622,435 €
