Kirov Chepetsk: the company "Biopractika" has opened a plant for producing feed protein from natural gas.

In the city of Kirovo-Chepetsk in the Kirov region, a new plant has been opened to produce feed protein from natural gas. This project was implemented by the company "Biopractice," which is a resident of "Skolkovo" and was founded by the non-state development institute "Innopractice." Innovative solutions were applied during the implementation process to significantly improve the quality and production processes. Special attention was paid to the development of engineering equipment for protein synthesis, as reported in a press release from the company "Innopractice."

This technology is of great importance as it could become an important component of the country's food security, as noted in a statement from "Innopractice." Also, microbial protein has great potential for export, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. The first contracts for the supply of trial batches of protein have already been signed with Russian and Chinese partners.

The CEO of "Biopractice," Sergey Portnov, asserts that protein from natural gas represents an alternative to high-quality fish meal and soy products for livestock, poultry farming, and aquaculture. The technology developed by the company is an important step in addressing the challenges faced by the food industry.

The Deputy Executive Director of "Innopractice," Dmitry Zaitsev, believes that the development of feed protein production from methane could increase the consumption of natural gas in the domestic market, create new opportunities for hydrocarbon raw material processing, and establish a new gas processing industry in Russia.

The Director of Agro- and Aquaculture at the Skolkovo Foundation, Sevil Naryshkina, also emphasized that the new technologies being developed by "Biopractice" help expand technological chains in mining companies and eliminate the shortage of feed additives. She noted that the opening of a new plant is an important step and could lead to the development of large-scale industrial production in the future.

In October 2020, "Biopractice" reported that, together with "Innopractice," a technology for producing feed protein from methane was developed, and a pilot plant was launched in Moscow. The quality of microbial protein is comparable to animal protein, and its production is more environmentally friendly. Additionally, producing protein from gas requires less land area compared to agriculture and animal husbandry.

The technology for producing microbial protein is based on the cultivation of methanotrophic bacteria, which form the basis for producing this protein. The bacteria use natural gas for nutrition and reproduction. The final product has a full protein composition with high levels of B-group vitamins, amino acids, and trace elements that meet the animals' needs. Unlike plant protein products, microbial proteins provide animals with a balanced amino acid composition.