20 February 2021
The promoter of the new Olatein & Prolein plant at Le Pollet, on the site of the former Saipol, promises a "world industrial first". Production is expected to start in the course of 2022. The promoters of the new Olatein & Prolein plant at Le Pollet in Dieppe, on the site of the former Saipol, promise a "world industrial first". The production of rapeseed plant protein for human consumption is expected to start in the course of 2022.
"More and more people on earth, a planet limited to meet food needs... So we have to change the way we feed ourselves." Jérôme Mallet, Olatein's Operations Director, explains the context of the construction of the new plant on the "Saipol" site at Le Pollet, Dieppe.
The production unit, which will also be operated with the company Prolein, relies on a vegetable protein, that derived from rapeseed : "Rapeseed cake contains 30 to 40% protein, it is very nutritious, but little used in human food, because there are "anti-nutritional" factors: eliminating them is the whole purpose of our project ..."
The plant will therefore implement a process "unique in the world on an industrial scale, innovative and patented" , which makes it possible to isolate the protein from rapeseed for human, and not just animal, food "without denaturing it". The end result is called CanolaPRO. This GMO-free, gluten-free, neutral-tasting protein can be used for milks and steaks with a texture "that allows vegan applications".
The Saipol plant was already specialized in rapeseed pressing processes. "There was a knowledge of the business ," says Dominique Charlemagne, project director for Avril and managing director of Prolein.
In addition, the site was made available following the accident of 2018, it was important to the Avril group to reindustrialize it to start a new activity." The port situation, which allows imports of the raw material by ship, also counted.
The installations allow the storage of seeds in silos and their treatment in pressure workshops. This is the Prolein part. Afterwards, Olatein recovers this cold-pressed cake and uses a water extraction process. "You get a powder, an almost pure protein," says Jérôme Mallet. "Because of the way water is used, it has to be treated when it is discharged into a new wastewater treatment plant," Dominique Charlemagne continues.
The industrialists assure that the water discharged, in fine, into the Arques, will meet "beyond European requirements, the Water Agency has helped us..." The organic residues from the process will also be used to produce biomethane that will be reinjected into the city's gas network, with a production corresponding to the annual heating consumption of 475 homes.
Olatein & Prolein aims for all safety and environmental certifications for its plant. "All this is recalled in the prefectoral decree obtained in July. Our process is solvent-free, everything is done with water, so odors will be minimized."
The plant will operate 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. "Part of the seed supplies will be by ship, the other by truck, shipments will be by truck, with an average of 30 to 35 trucks per day, the activity will be half as much as in the past," the industrialists promise.
F. W.
Prolein is the joint venture company jointly owned by Avril and the Public Investment Bank (BPI). Olatein is the joint venture company co-owned by DSM (75%) and Avril (25%).
Resource: www.paris-normandie.fr
