Researchers in Germany pioneered a method to transform CO2 into vitamin B9 and protein, using only renewable energy to feed CO2 with microbes, hydrogen, and oxygen.
The newly developed method was reported in Trends in Biotechnology in September 2024, offering an alternative method for food supply at a time when traditional farming is under pressure from extreme weather events and a growing global population. This may become an option to produce a sustainable, micronutrient-enriched protein alternative that may one day make it to our plates.
“This is a fermentation process similar to brewing beer, but instead of giving the microbes sugar, we gave them gas and acetate,” said one of the authors, Largus Angenent, from the University of Tübingen.
“We knew that yeast could produce vitamin B9 on their own with sugar, however, we didn’t know if they could do the same with acetate,” said Angenent.
The process relies on two different microbes, Thermoanaerobacter kivui, found in vinegar, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, known as baker’s yeast, working together in a system to produce both protein and vitamin B9 (folate), an essential nutrient for cell growth and metabolism.
Just 6 grams of dried yeast is enough to meet the daily vitamin B9 requirement, and 85 grams, or 6 tablespoons, of yeast provides 61% of daily protein needs, compared to 34% from beef and 38% from lentils,” said Angenent.
This system addresses two pressing global issues — food shortages and environmental damage. By turning CO2 into food and using renewable energy, it cuts down on carbon emissions and reduces the need for farmland.
Researchers said more work is needed before the system can be used widely. The next steps include scaling up the process, ensuring the yeast is safe for food consumption, and testing whether there is interest from the market.
There’s much more to do before picking up the research team’s yeast at grocery stores as a protein alternative. Researchers plan to optimize and scale up production, ensure food safety, conduct technical and economic analyses, and test the market interest.
- Power-to-vitamins: producing folate (vitamin B9) from renewable electric power and CO2 with a microbial protein system Schmitz, Lisa Marie et al.Trends in Biotechnology, Volume 0, Issue 0
