The Rural BioReFarmeries (RBRF) project is rethinking how we can build local, circular and sustainable value chains for bio-based products. By focusing on small-scale and decentralised green biorefineries, the project aims to unlock the potential of rural areas across Europe — reducing waste, boosting local economies and supporting the EU’s green transition.
To successfully achieve the project’s mission, the 19 partners that conform the RBRF consortium are joining forces across 8 work packages. This article focuses on Work Package 5 (WP5), led by Carbery.
WP5 in a nutshell
Title: High Value Food, Flavours and Antimicrobials Development and Validation
WP Leader: Aliabbas Saleh, Innovation Manager at Carbery.
Led by Carbery, a global leader in Food Tech innovation, WP5 evaluates how proteins and fatty acids derived from green biorefineries can be used in human nutrition and animal’s gut health. The end goal? To successfully transform biorefined grass into protein-rich foods, natural flavourings and antimicrobial compounds. By combining scientific validation with regulatory assessments, the team is paving the way for grass-based ingredients to become sustainable alternatives in Europe’s food systems.
Key objectives
WP5 has four main objectives:
- Assess the suitability of grass-derived white protein for high-value applications.
- Evaluate protein hydrolysis to create peptides with enhanced nutritional or functional benefits.
- Utilise fatty acids to produce flavour compounds (fatty acid esters) and antimicrobial ingredients.
- Explore regulatory pathways to ensure new ingredients can reach the market.
Main tasks and technical activities
To achieve these objectives, the WP5 team is carrying out several interconnected tasks:
- Protein characterisation and optimisation: Analysing white protein extracted from green biorefineries to determine its nutritional profile, digestibility, functional properties, and sensory characteristics under different processing conditions.
- Hydrolysis and bioactive peptide development: Investigating enzymatic hydrolysis of white protein to create peptides with enhanced nutritional and functional benefits, including improved digestibility and potential health-promoting bioactivities.
- Flavour and antimicrobial development: Converting fatty acids from WP4 into fatty acid esters for use in natural flavourings, and testing fatty acids alone or in combination with other natural compounds as antimicrobial agents for food and packaging applications.
- Animal health assessment: Evaluating the effects of fatty acids on gut health in porcine models, using in vitro and in vivo studies to explore benefits such as reduced post-weaning diarrhoea.
- Regulatory assessment and market readiness: Mapping relevant regulatory requirements for proteins, flavours, and antimicrobial ingredients to ensure compliance and smooth market entry.
A collaborative effort
WP5 is a highly interdisciplinary effort, bringing together expertise from industry, academia and farming. Carbery will be working closely with researchers from Munster Technological University, Aarhus University, University College Dublin and Wageningen University & Research, and primary producers from Barryroe Co-operative and Carhue Piggeries in Ireland.
Each partner contributes to different aspects of the work: from protein analysis and hydrolysis, to flavour compound production, to animal health testing. This cross-sectoral collaboration ensures that the scientific, technological and regulatory dimensions are fully addressed.
Expected outcomes
The team involved in WP5 is set to deliver:
- A comprehensive assessment of white protein for nutritional and functional applications, including digestibility, amino acid and mineral profiles, and sensory evaluation.
- Novel protein hydrolysates with enhanced bioactive and functional properties for potential use in food and health applications.
- Reports on fatty acid esters for flavouring, demonstrating their suitability in food systems.
- Validated antimicrobial formulations based on fatty acids, for use in food and packaging applications.
- Evidence of beneficial effects of fatty acids on porcine gut health, through in vitro and in vivo studies.
- A regulatory review mapping pathways for market access of proteins, flavours, and antimicrobial ingredients.
Through WP5, the Rural BioReFarmeries project is demonstrating how grass-derived proteins and fatty acids can be transformed into high-value ingredients for food, flavour and health applications. By combining scientific validation with practical and regulatory insights, this work package highlights the potential of green biorefineries to deliver sustainable, innovative and commercially relevant solutions that can help to advance a circular bioeconomy in Europe.
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