Consumers have tried plant-based protein drinks and plant-based burgers, and soy milk and vegetarian meat are no longer new. But can you imagine sausages, jerky, and yogurt made from microorganisms? On May 17th, a reporter visited Jiangxi Fushine Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Fushine Bio"), one of the few companies in China to achieve 1,000-ton microbial protein industrialization, and walked into the microbial protein production workshop to explore the stories hidden behind each fermentation tank.

Fushine Bio is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jiangxi Fushine Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Fushine Pharmaceuticals"), a company specializing in the development of bio-fermentation technology, production and sales of bio-fermentation products. It is located in Jingdezhen City, Jiangxi Province, and covers an area of 200,000 square meters.

In Jingdezhen, the "Millennium Porcelain Capital", the future food industry is developing in full swing.

"We firmly believe that every technological innovation will bring about groundbreaking new opportunities for industrial development." The relevant person in charge of Fushine Pharmaceuticals proudly said that Fushine microbial protein is to create a new way of food production, making the future promising.

Following the staff into Fushine Bio, the strong industrial-style architecture caught my eye. After a ten-minute drive through various pipelines and buildings, I arrived at the microbial protein plant. Entering the ordinary office building, the staff immediately started chatting. "Here's the company introduction and the microbial protein products on display. You can try them out."

After tasting the product, the reporter found that unless consumers have high expectations for meat quality, they rarely can tell the difference between microbial protein meat and regular livestock and poultry meat. Someone who was eating with them also said, "Unless I chew it very slowly, I really can't taste the difference in texture."

The staff said that after cooking and processing, the taste of microbial protein meat may be better, but there are still some differences. Some people say it has a faint meaty aroma, while others say it has the aroma of tofu.

What exactly is microbial protein? And what technology allows microorganisms to become delicious foods on consumers' tables?

"This requires us to establish a comprehensive food perspective, deriving calories and protein from cultivated land, grasslands, forests, oceans, plants, animals, and microorganisms, and developing food resources in a comprehensive and multifaceted manner." Staff members explained that microbial protein refers to protein synthesized through microbial fermentation. It has a high protein content, contains all essential amino acids, and is rich in vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Microbial protein is efficiently produced in closed, intensive systems called "bioreactors." It requires little arable land, does not use pesticides or antibiotics, and does not directly compete with agricultural crops and food products for fertile soil and freshwater resources. It can be produced on marginal land and in industrialized metropolitan areas, enabling "urban microbial farming."

According to reports, Fushine Bio's microbial protein is based on the Fusarium chassis strain, using glucose, water and other raw materials, and is produced through biomass fermentation technology.

"Fushine microbial protein is highly efficient, low-consumption, sustainable, and healthier. It grows rapidly, doubling in size every five hours, significantly faster than traditional animal husbandry." Staff explained that the core component is the master cell bank, stored in a -86°C refrigerator. This is then scaled up and fed into the final fermentation tank for fermentation to produce microbial protein. After fermentation, the fermentation broth undergoes inactivation, solid-liquid separation, and filtration to produce a wet-based microbial protein product. The workshop is automated and intelligently managed, with a control system encompassing feeding, sterilization, fermentation, parameter setting, and process adjustments, essentially enabling unmanned operation.

Fushine Pharmaceuticals reportedly possesses a novel bacterial strain with fully independent intellectual property rights and has received a notice of acceptance from the State Intellectual Property Office. The company has successfully industrialized ton-scale products and has received orders for 1,200 tons of microbial protein products, with production and delivery progressing as planned. Fushine Bio is currently investing in the "200,000-ton Annual Microbial Protein and Resource Comprehensive Utilization Project (Phase I)." The overall project will be progressively advanced based on industry development progress and market demand. The project will design and construct a high-standard, fully automated bio-fermentation microbial protein production line. The fermented yeast liquid will be comprehensively utilized through refining, concentration, and compounding to produce amino acid water-soluble fertilizers. The project will also include production workshops, warehouses, utility buildings, a circulating water pump room, and a tank farm, along with supporting facilities. Over 200 sets of key production equipment, including fermentation tanks, batching tanks, filters, autoclaves, automatic packaging machines, multi-effect evaporators, compounding tanks, and automatic filling machines, will be purchased and installed. Upon completion, the project will have an annual production capacity of 20,000 tons of microbial protein and 50,000 tons of amino acid water-soluble fertilizers.

At the first National Microbial Protein Technology Innovation and Industry Development Conference held earlier, Fushine Pharmaceuticals signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Hong Kong Green Alliance Co., Ltd. and Malaysia's Ultimeat (M) Sdn Bhd., and jointly issued a microbial protein "Industry-University-Research-Application" Industry Alliance Initiative with Jiangnan University Future Food Science Center, Jiangxi Normal University, Jiaxing Future Food Research Institute, Yixing Food and Biotechnology Research Institute, Hong Kong Green Alliance Holdings Co., Ltd., Ultimeat (M) Sdn Bhd and Muen (Guangzhou) Biotechnology Co., Ltd. to jointly promote the high-quality development of the microbial protein industry.

"We are committed to developing microbial protein products and hope to build a better world and a brighter future through scientific and technological innovation," said Bao Jianhua, Chairman of Fushine Pharmaceuticals.

As a vital component of the bioeconomy, the microbial protein industry plays a crucial role in ensuring national food security, promoting healthy consumption, and fostering green development. As Chen Jian, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, has stated, microbial protein will transform traditional protein manufacturing, enabling high-quality supply while also improving human health and the planet's ecological well-being.

The picture shows staff members conducting inspections. Photo provided by the interviewee

Our reporter Yan Li