Plant-Based Food: the Future of Nutrition
Plant-based Food is at the core of GEA’s most innovative projects, and over the past few years the company has been strongly involved in the development of technologies for the production of texturized vegetable proteins and other vegetal foods.
Working alongside GEA is NEUMAN & ESSER, international multi-sector company specialized in cutting-edge milling technologies. By pooling their expertise, these two companies are able to tackle evolving market demands, offering a comprehensive range of solutions for processing texturized vegetable protein foods.
For GEA, a comprehensive offering does not only involve supplying machinery and technology that can be used to cover the entire food processing process, from raw materials to the final product for end consumers, but also involves assisting the client company step by step in designing, testing and improving products and processes.
Plant-based proteins: the food of the future
By 2030, the plant-based protein market is expected to generate a revenue of approximately $160 billion: this projection is rooted in strong foundations and is based on observed growth between 2020 and 2022, when business value increased from $29.4 billion to $44.2 billion (data provided by Statista).
These forecasts are indicative of the population’s growing interest in alternative protein solutions to meat, milk, fish and other animal-derived products: this interest stems from a growing global awareness of the impact that their food choices have on climate change and on the environment.
A recent global survey conducted by GEA shows that, as of today, 35% of consumers say that they often choose alternative proteins. It is very likely that this percentage will continue to rise, since consumers are becoming more and more curious about the evolution of these products, considering also that many have said that they are increasingly interested in adopting a sustainable diet.
New foods, new alternatives
Working together to develop quality alternative protein foods
GEA has been focusing on the issue of Plant-based Food for a relatively long time. In the last few years, it has implemented several projects aimed at providing companies with technologies designed to produce foods with a high alternative protein content, for example the series of xTru Twin extruders.
The cooperation with NEUMAN & ESSER allows the two companies to offer their customers a comprehensive, advanced Plant-based Food by relying on a single partner. And this is happening at a time when the market is changing at a rapid pace, marking yet another milestone for GEA in the field of alternative proteins.
About Neuman & Esser
NEUMAN & ESSER stands as the industry’s partner of choice, propelling the energy transition and the circular economy through its integrated solutions.
With over a century of experience in mechanical process engineering, they are the experts for coarse and finest grinding and classification and play a crucial role in demanding applications ranging from e.g., minerals and powder coating to recent innovations like performance materials for battery storage systems, recovered Carbon Black, and enriched protein production. Their OEM-portfolio covers:
- pendulum roller mills
- impact classifier mills
- air classifiers
Family-owned for almost 200 years, today its global sales and service network employs more than 1,500 people, committed to bringing challenging customer projects to life around the world – from evaluating project feasibility, through engineering, construction, and commissioning to digitally supported service during operation.
The strongly growing industry of alternative foods has become a future focus market for NEUMAN & ESSER, primarily thanks to its outstanding milling and classifying technologies, which are especially suitable for producing flours and protein concentrates that are essential for making a variety of alternative foods to meat, fish, and derived products. Joining GEA’s expertise is seen as a promising partnership with great potential.
"This valuable partnership with GEA is the right step to meet the global demand for ecological and efficient solutions for alternative proteins and a responsible use of resources."
Marc Giersemehl
Managing Director NEUMAN & ESSER Process Technology GmbH
“The plant-based protein market is here and is stirring. It has huge potential. On the one hand, we need to understand what the market demands when it comes to meat alternatives: everything revolves around people. And, on the other hand, it is also necessary to consider the world of industry, namely, people who strongly believe in the potential of alternative proteins. We are ready.”
NEUMAN & ESSER Process Technology GmbH
“Working with GEA is an opportunity for us to bring to market a comprehensive solution for the food industry. We are really eager to see how this project will evolve in the coming future.”
Ulrich Garde
Head of Marketing & Communications NEUMAN & ESSER Process Technology GmbH
A comprehensive product line for Plant-based Food
What role will GEA and NEUMAN & ESSER technologies play in this project aimed at discovering Plant-based food? The first thing to bear in mind is that these two companies have very different expertise.
In fact, NEUMAN & ESSER has extremely sophisticated, vertical milling technologies, ensuring cutting-edge particle sizes. While these technologies were originally developed for use in the chemical, petrochemical and mineral industries, the winning insight was to transfer this know-how to the production of flour, starch and protein concentrates, starting with the milling of legumes.
Therefore, NEUMAN & ESSER analyses and processes raw materials so that it can produce flour and protein concentrates, which are two key ingredients needed to produce texturized vegetable proteins by extrusion and much more. Such elements can actually be used for other applications also by extrusion, as in the case of pasta and protein snacks.
Moreover, the joint efforts between GEA and NEUMAN & ESSER do not just affect the production options available for vegetable proteins and meat alternatives; in fact, this collaboration also influences positively the processing of gluten-free pasta, glass noodles, flours and pre-cooked starches. NEUMAN & ESSER’s mechanical process engineering expertise is a key benefit for meeting specifications that will allow customers to produce top-quality finished products.
Alongside these technologies, GEA and NEUMAN & ESSER also offer customers consultancy services and assistance throughout the entire process, thus providing a full all-round service by combining two extremely vertical and different types of know-how.
“By partnering with NEUMAN & ESSER, the offering in the field of New Food is not only enhanced with machinery in order to provide companies with a complete processing system for products, but it also increases exponentially the shared knowledge we are able to offer in addition to our technologies, so that we can meet the needs of an ever-evolving market.”
GEA, Pasta Extrusion and Milling
