Tereos has inaugurated a pilot unit to produce food based on plant proteins, saying that it is convinced that one way to respond to the future nutritional needs of the world population is to develop plant proteins.

Tereos has inaugurated a pilot unit to produce food based on plant proteins.

“The inauguration of this industrial pilot unit is an important step in the work Tereos has been conducting around plant proteins for many years,” said Alexis Duval, CEO of Tereos. “It demonstrates the Group’s great capacity to innovate and develop new products that cater for the world’s evolving food needs.”

Global population growth predictions indicate that the planet’s need for protein will double by 2050, Tereos notes, saying that animal proteins, which now make up 70% of the world’s protein consumption, will no longer be able to meet the increased demand on their own. Given these coming changes, Tereos says it is convinced that one way to respond to the future nutritional needs of the world population is to develop plant proteins.

Tereos dedicates nearly 50% of its R&D budget to nutrition, and is said to be the world’s second-largest producer of native wheat protein.

After a phase of research and development, this year Tereos is set to launch a pilot production unit, allowing initial commercialisation on the mass catering market. This new product, referred to as “GenVie” during its development phase, will be commercialised under the brand name “Le sauté végétal” on the mass catering market.

Prepared in shredded form, “Le sauté végétal" is 100% plant-based, and composed of wheat proteins and chickpea flour, all from French agricultural commodities. Thanks to its patented process, which received an award at the French “World Innovation Contest” in 2015, Tereos says it has developed a healthy, tasty, easy-to-cook product that is ideal for all recipe types.