GrainCorp, CSIRO, and v2food Partner on New Plant-Based Research Collaboration

GrainCorp, Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, and plant-based food producer v2food have partnered on a $4.4 million research project to advance plant-based proteins.

The endeavor is being funded by the Australian government’s Cooperative Research Centers Projects (CRC-P) Program to separate and manufacture proteins from canola, soy, fava beans, and chickpeas at commercial scale.

The partnership will work toward building Australia’s processing and manufacturing expertise to reduce the country’s reliance on imported ingredients and to add value to its grains and oilseeds through new product applications. The partners will identify infrastructure needs for commercialization and to create a commercial plant protein supply chain that benefits Australian grain and oilseed growers, its food and aquafeed manufacturers, and its consumers.

The phased project, which is expected to culminate in 2023, will take a staged approach to process development, begin scale protein fractionation, conduct sensory evaluation, and examine product application. Likewise, goals will include adding value to existing plant protein capability at GrainCorp’s oilseed processing facility in Numurkah, Victoria, and boosting the country’s plant-based sector with end-to-end domestic capability to create resilience and strengthen global competitiveness.

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