SBIR Phase I: Biomanufacturing Red Natural Food Dye

SBIR 第一阶段：生物制造红色天然食品染料

• 批准号: 1547738
• 负责人: Stephen Pietsch
• 金额: $ 15万
• 依托单位: RedLeaf Biologics Inc.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2016-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1547738&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Biomanufacturing; Red; Natural

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project will be the development of an alternative to synthetic chemicals that are used to impart color to food. The food industry has a long history of using synthetic pigments that impart color to foods. However, there have been concerns about negative health impacts of some high volume synthetic colorants, and the food industry is increasingly interested in identifying colorants that are obtained from biological sources. This project will explore the technical and commercial feasibility of a class of naturally occurring pigments that have properties of color, stability, and safety that make them attractive as food colorants but for which a suitable source is not currently available. Based on six years of prior research, a potentially suitable botanical source of a red pigment has been identified, and now propose to develop a commercial process to produce the pigment from the botanical source.This SBIR Phase I project proposes to develop a proof-of-concept pilot-scale process for extracting and purifying a naturally occurring pigment from a source plant. The pigment, which has not previously been available in commercial quantities, will be produced from a selected variety of a major crop species. Using mechanical separations, food grade solvent extractions, and various commercially-available food-grade adsorbants the goal is to produce pigment under conditions that can be used for proof-of-concept testing in model food products. The pigment produced will be characterized by analytical chemistry methods as a prelude to seeking FDA approval to sell the pigment for food use. The extracted pigment will be tested for performance characteristics, and for thermal, pH, and light stability in a range of probable food applications.

这项小型企业创新研究（SBIR）项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力将是开发用于赋予食物颜色的合成化学物质的替代品。食品工业有悠久的历史，使用合成色素为食物赋予颜色的颜色。但是，人们一直担心某些大容量合成着色剂的负面影响，而食品行业越来越感兴趣地识别从生物来源获得的着色剂。该项目将探讨一类具有颜色，稳定性和安全性能的天然颜料的技术和商业可行性，这些颜料使其具有吸引力作为食用着色剂，但目前尚不可用。根据六年的先前研究，已经确定了潜在的红色颜料的植物源，现在建议开发从植物来源生产颜料的商业过程。该SBIR I期项目提议开发一种概念证明的试验量表的过程，以从源工厂中提取和净化一种自然发生的颜料。该颜料以前尚未以商业量提供，将由选定的各种主要农作物物种产生。 使用机械分离，食品级溶剂提取物以及各种商业上可用的食品级吸附剂，目标是在可用于模型食品中的概念验证测试的条件下生产颜料。产生的颜料将以分析化学方法为特征，是寻求FDA批准以出售颜料以供食品使用的序幕。提取的颜料将在一系列可能的食物应用中测试性能特征以及热，pH和光稳定性。