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2024/1/24

Macauba food ingredients — spin-off of Fraunhofer IVV aims to protect the rain forest

To advance the sustainable production of vegetable oil, proteins, and fiber, the Fraunhofer IVV branch lab in Campinas, Brazil, is working to use the full fruits of the macauba palm tree. A new extraction method has been developed, making it possible to use not only the oil from the macauba fruits, but also the other secondary products of processing. Fraunhofer IVV developed this method up to the pilot scale and applied for a patent for it. The transition to commercial application came in the summer of 2023, with a spin-off from Fraunhofer IVV.

The new company, Macauba Ingredients GmbH, is based in the city of Freising. It uses macauba fruits to produce good-tasting oil and high-quality protein and fiber preparations. With their outstanding functional properties, these ingredients are suitable for applications in food, including pet food, and may also be useful in packaging, so high value creation and profitability are within reach.

The challenge of producing vegetable oil

Global production of vegetable oil has more than doubled in the past 20 years due to rising demand for biofuels. Production is expected to ramp up a further 6 million metric tons per year, reaching more than 330 million metric tons by 2040. Soybean and palm oil are currently the dominant raw materials, with a market share of 62%. Some 13 million hectares of rain forest is cleared each year to make space to cultivate these crops. If this trend is not halted, the expansion of vegetable oil production will result in the large-scale destruction of the world’s tropical rain forests.

Integrated use of macauba as a potential solution

The macauba palm could unlock one path forward to resolving this dilemma. Macauba is a species of oil palm native to Brazil. At about 2.5 metric tons of vegetable oil per hectare per year, its yield is comparable to that of conventional oil palms, but it needs significantly less water and is more resistant to drought. This means macauba palms can be cultivated for oil production in less fertile soils and degraded pastureland in dry regions of Brazil, eliminating the need to clear the rain forest for vegetable oil production.

Growing these palms as crops also unlocks great potential in terms of sustainability and biodiversity. For example, when incorporated into integrated agroforestry systems — like those found in Europe’s meadow orchards — macauba makes an important ecological contribution to the soils. The root systems loosen degraded soils, prevent erosion, store water over long periods, and create a moist microclimate and secure habitat for many organisms that live underground or in the soil. Farming these palms also helps to store carbon; their roots and trunks capture and store about 20 metric tons of CO2 per hectare per year.

Macauba cultivation and the shade provided by the trees significantly improve soil productivity, so pasture grasses and crops such as soybeans thrive much better between the palms than in direct sunlight. Higher grazing yields, for example, mean that more than twice as many cattle can graze between macauba palms, improving the economic situation of small farms.
There is vast potential available for this new cultivation concept. More than 150 million hectares of pastureland is available for macauba farming in Brazil alone. Macauba palms could be planted sustainably in these areas without any adverse impact on ecosystems. This would mean enough vegetable oil could be produced to shift 100% of global air traffic to biofuel — without harming the environment.

Holistic use of oil, proteins, and fiber enhances value creation

The Brazilian government has identified the use of macauba as a strategically important topic, so there is widespread support for planting and cultivating this species. Going forward, this and the sustainability effects discussed above are expected to spur increasing cultivation of macauba palms.

However, because the oil content of the fruit is not high, using macauba for oil generates large amounts of residue from pressing and extraction. Previously, the only use for these byproducts was as low-quality animal feed, which could have made macauba cultivation less cost-effective.

The holistic concept used by Macauba Ingredients GmbH makes it possible to use all parts of the fruit in full, so the business model for macauba farming is highly profitable. The proteins present in the fruit are especially valuable. They have a neutral smell and taste, a significant advantage over soybeans or peas. This is due primarily to the high oxidation resistance of the seed fats involved, which prevents the formation of bitter, astringent, and “beany” oxidation products. For this reason, the proteins can be used in a vast array of applications.

The fiber found in the byproducts of oil production also has valuable properties comparable to locust bean gum. This makes the fiber equally suitable for sophisticated food applications and technical applications.

The business model adopted by Macauba Ingredients GmbH will make low-cost, good-tasting, and highly functional ingredients available in the future. Because every part of the fruit is used in full, annual revenue can be increased from 3,200 euros per hectare for oil and animal feed production to 6,500 euros per hectare when the use of proteins and fiber is added. In this way, macauba cultivation unlocks environmental benefits, but that is not all. Robust value creation also opens up sustainable long-term economic perspectives for farmers and their families in Latin America.

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