# Oil and fat industry biotech Enzymatic interesterification, degumming and fat-splitting are replacing chemical processing steps across the conventional edible-oil industry — Novonesis's Quara Supreme recovers 2% more yield in vegetable-oil degumming, and a new Novonesis/Thyssenkrupp Uhde process cuts the energy needed for fatty-acid production. Source: https://en.bioecon.ru/technology/oil-fat-industry-biotech/ Updated: 2026-08-18 ## Overview and value chain Markers: [EC: EU food enzyme authorization (Regulation (EC) 1332/2008) | OECD: Food systems | Regulator: FDA (USA), EFSA (EU)] Oil and fat industry biotech applies enzymes to established edible-oil and specialty-fat processing steps — interesterification, degumming, fat splitting — replacing chemical catalysts with biological ones to cut yield loss, energy use or unwanted byproducts. AAK, a global specialty vegetable fats and oils leader, launched ILLEXAO EN 10 in mid-2026, a new cocoa butter equivalent for enrobed chocolate applications that helps manufacturers manage cocoa price volatility while improving formulation flexibility. Novonesis released Quara Supreme, a thermostable enzyme designed to reduce yield losses in water degumming by up to 2% — a traditionally major source of oil loss in vegetable-oil processing — and separately partnered with Thyssenkrupp Uhde to launch an enzymatic fat-splitting process aimed at cutting energy consumption and improving production flexibility and efficiency in fatty-acid production. Bunge holds patents on both a batch process for enzymatic lipid modification and a plant-based intramuscular fat substitute stabilized with the enzyme transglutaminase, while GEA has introduced an enzymatically enhanced degumming solution, GEA eTOP Degumming, extending the enzymatic-replacement trend into processing equipment itself. Key directions of oil and fat industry biotech: 1. **Enzymatic degumming (Enzymatic Degumming):** replacing or enhancing chemical degumming of crude vegetable oil with enzymes to recover additional yield and reduce processing losses. 2. **Enzymatic fat-splitting for fatty-acid production (Enzymatic Fat-Splitting for Fatty-Acid Production):** biological catalysis replacing high-temperature/high-pressure chemical fat splitting to cut energy use. 3. **Specialty fat/cocoa butter equivalents (Specialty Fat/Cocoa Butter Equivalents):** engineered vegetable fat blends substituting for volatile or constrained commodity fats like cocoa butter. 4. **Enzyme-stabilized plant-based fat substitutes (Enzyme-Stabilized Plant-Based Fat Substitutes):** transglutaminase and similar enzymes stabilizing plant-oil-in-water emulsions as intramuscular fat replacements in blended meat products. ### Sectoral value chain ``` [crude oil/fat sourcing] ──> [enzymatic processing] ──> [yield/quality recovery] ──> [specialty fat formulation] │ (food-enzyme authorization) │ ▼ [food manufacturer sale] <─── [equipment/process integration] <┘ ``` ### Value chain levels | Level | Description | Key inputs/outputs | |:---|:---|:---| | **Crude Oil/Fat Sourcing** | procuring crude vegetable oil or animal/plant fat feedstock | **In:** crude oil, fat feedstock. **Out:** processing feedstock. | | **Enzymatic Processing** | applying enzymes to degum, split or interesterify the feedstock | **In:** feedstock, enzyme. **Out:** processed oil/fat fraction. | | **Yield/Quality Recovery** | recovering additional yield or quality versus chemical-only processing | **In:** processed fraction. **Out:** recovered yield/quality metric. | | **Specialty Fat Formulation** | formulating the processed oil/fat into a specialty product (cocoa butter equivalent, fat substitute) | **In:** processed fraction. **Out:** formulated specialty fat. | | **Food-Enzyme Authorization** | clearing FDA or EU Regulation (EC) 1332/2008 review for the enzyme used | **In:** safety dossier. **Out:** market authorization. | | **Food Manufacturer Sale** | selling the specialty fat/oil product to food manufacturers | **In:** authorized product. **Out:** revenue. | Cross-cutting technologies of the sector: - **Thermostable degumming enzymes (Thermostable Degumming Enzymes):** enzyme variants engineered to remain active at the temperatures used in industrial oil degumming. - **Enzymatic fat-splitting catalysis (Enzymatic Fat-Splitting Catalysis):** biological catalysts replacing high-temperature/pressure chemical fat splitting in fatty-acid production. - **Enzyme-stabilized emulsion formulation (Enzyme-Stabilized Emulsion Formulation):** enzymes such as transglutaminase stabilizing plant-oil-in-water emulsions for use as fat substitutes. --- ## US The US hosts a major agribusiness holding enzymatic lipid-modification and plant-based fat-substitute patents. ### enzymatic lipid modification patents, plant-based intramuscular fat substitutes, batch enzymatic processing - **Bunge:** holds a patent for a batch process enabling enzymatic modification of lipids, and a separate patent for a plant-based intramuscular fat substitute combining plant proteins with plant oils in an oil-in-water emulsion stabilized by the enzyme transglutaminase. --- ## CN Public information on a dedicated Chinese oil-and-fat-industry biotech originator was not confirmed with company-specific detail in this pass; the section stays at the policy level. ### no confirmed company-specific detail this pass, adjacent bio-based fuel/polymer research activity - **No confirmed company-specific detail this pass:** the Chinese candidates investigated in this pass returned market-research reports on castor-oil-based biopolymers and bio-jet fuel equipment, plus unrelated investment news, rather than a source confirming a specific oil/fat-processing enzyme originator. - **Adjacent bio-based research activity:** academic and industrial activity around castor-oil biopolymers and biofuel production is active in the region, adjacent to but distinct from enzymatic edible-oil/fat processing specifically. --- ## EU Sweden, Denmark and Germany anchor the region's activity, spanning a specialty-fats leader, the sector's dominant enzyme supplier and an equipment maker extending enzymatic processing into hardware. ### cocoa butter equivalent launch, degumming yield-recovery enzyme, enzyme-enhanced processing equipment - **AAK:** launched ILLEXAO EN 10 in mid-2026, a new cocoa butter equivalent for enrobed chocolate applications helping manufacturers manage cocoa price volatility while improving formulation flexibility. - **Novonesis:** released Quara Supreme, a thermostable enzyme reducing yield losses in vegetable-oil water degumming by up to 2%, and partnered with Thyssenkrupp Uhde to launch an enzymatic fat-splitting process cutting energy consumption in fatty-acid production. - **GEA Group:** introduced GEA eTOP Degumming, an enzymatically enhanced degumming solution extending the enzymatic-replacement trend into processing equipment itself. --- ## Leading companies and research institutes | Company / Institute | Country | Key products / platforms | Tech features | Status 2026 | |:---|:---|:---|:---|:---| | **AAK** | 🇸🇪 Sweden | *ILLEXAO EN 10 cocoa butter equivalent* | specialty vegetable fat formulation (2026 launch) | Commercial | | **Bunge** | 🇺🇸 USA | *Enzymatic lipid modification, plant-based fat substitute* | batch enzymatic process; transglutaminase-stabilized emulsion | Commercial | | **Novonesis** | 🇩🇰 Denmark | *Quara Supreme, enzymatic fat-splitting* | 2% degumming yield recovery; Thyssenkrupp Uhde partnership | Commercial | | **GEA Group** | 🇩🇪 Germany | *GEA eTOP Degumming* | enzymatically enhanced degumming equipment | Operating | | **Gepzymes** | 🇮🇳 India | *Precision enzyme solutions* | industrial enzyme platform for processing efficiency | Commercial | --- ## Tech stack and innovations The stack replaces chemical catalysis with enzymatic catalysis at specific, well-defined oil/fat processing steps. 1. **Thermostable enzyme degumming (Thermostable Enzyme Degumming):** - a thermostable enzyme variant survives industrial degumming temperatures to recover yield that would otherwise be lost. - case: Novonesis's Quara Supreme recovers up to 2% additional yield in vegetable-oil water degumming. 2. **Enzymatic fat-splitting for energy reduction (Enzymatic Fat-Splitting for Energy Reduction):** - biological catalysis replaces the high-temperature/pressure chemical process traditionally used to split fats into fatty acids. - case: the Novonesis/Thyssenkrupp Uhde enzymatic fat-splitting process is explicitly aimed at cutting energy consumption in fatty-acid production. 3. **Transglutaminase-stabilized fat-substitute emulsions (Transglutaminase-Stabilized Fat-Substitute Emulsions):** - the enzyme transglutaminase stabilizes a plant-oil-in-water emulsion to function as an intramuscular fat substitute. - case: Bunge's patented plant-based fat substitute combines plant proteins and oils in exactly this enzyme-stabilized emulsion format. --- ## Value chains and production pipelines ### Industrial pipeline of an enzymatically processed specialty fat (EU Reg. 1332/2008 authorization) ``` ┌───────────────────────────┐ ┌───────────────────────────┐ │ 1. Crude oil/fat sourcing │ ───> │ 2. Enzymatic processing │ └───────────────────────────┘ └───────────────────────────┘ │ ▼ ┌───────────────────────────┐ ┌───────────────────────────┐ │ 4. Specialty fat formulation│ <─── │ 3. Yield/quality recovery│ └───────────────────────────┘ └───────────────────────────┘ │ ▼ ┌───────────────────────────┐ ┌───────────────────────────┐ │ 5. Food-enzyme authorization│ ───> │ 6. Food manufacturer sale│ └───────────────────────────┘ └───────────────────────────┘ ``` #### Stage 1: Crude oil/fat sourcing Crude vegetable oil or animal/plant fat feedstock is procured for processing. #### Stage 2: Enzymatic processing Enzymes are applied to degum, split or interesterify the feedstock in place of, or alongside, chemical catalysts. #### Stage 3: Yield/quality recovery The enzymatic step recovers additional yield or quality — e.g., up to 2% more oil in degumming — versus a chemical-only process. #### Stage 4: Specialty fat formulation The processed oil or fat is formulated into a specialty product such as a cocoa butter equivalent or an enzyme-stabilized fat substitute. #### Stage 5: Food-enzyme authorization The enzyme and resulting product clear FDA review or EU Regulation (EC) 1332/2008 authorization before sale. #### Stage 6: Food manufacturer sale The specialty fat or oil product is sold to food manufacturers managing commodity price volatility or formulation requirements.