A new project funded by GUDP will develop a groundbreaking biosolution where organic waste is converted into functional proteins to be used in dairy products such as milk and mozzarella. The project, named SPRING, is led by the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and has received almost DKK 9.6 million in funding. The consortium consists of DTU, Roskilde University (RUC), Knowledge Hub Zealand, Alfa Laval and PlanetDairy.

The food industry’s increasing demand for alternative protein sources creates a need for new agricultural and animal production solutions that have a lower climate and environmental impact.

In the SPRING project, researchers and companies will develop a technology where waste streams are first converted into biogas and then into specialized microorganisms – so-called Single-Cell Proteins (SCP) – through microbial fermentation processes. The proteins are high-quality, food-grade proteins with low environmental impact.

The project uses microbial consortia, where several microorganisms work together and exploit each other’s metabolic strengths. This increases both efficiency, robustness and yield in protein production, while developing green downstream processes for harvesting, extraction and formulation of the proteins.

SPRING will demonstrate how SCP can be included in hybrid dairy products, where a significant proportion of animal protein is replaced, without compromising taste, texture and functionality. The project thus contributes directly to GUDP’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the food sector and supports the Danish strategy for green proteins.

SPRING is built on a strong consortium that covers the entire value chain from research and technology development to scaling and finished food products.

The project period runs from 2026 to 2030, and the technology is expected to form the basis for commercial application after the end of the project.