Lantmännen and Arla in collaboration with Chalmers – biotechnology for sustainable food production of the future

20 November 2024 Press releases, 2024

The growing world population and the urgent need for a sustainable food system require new ways of producing and consuming food. Chalmers University of Technology is now hosting a unique consortium for developing the food of the future, in collaboration with Lantmännen and Arla.

The food system is at the core of many of the global challenges. A growing population globally requires more food to be produced, while the impact of the food system on the climate must be reduced.

Another major challenge is the shift towards healthier eating habits. Diets is one of the most important modifiable risk factors for non-communicable diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which all lead to reduced quality of life and high healthcare costs.

In collaboration with Lantmännen and Arla, Chalmers will build competence and develop new approaches within food biotechnology to meet these challenges

"We have great ambitions in both environmental and health areas, and collaborations with academia and research are a very important part of this work. Our project together with Chalmers and Arla Foods is a clear and positive example of how different disciplines and actors can work together to promote greater insight and development," says Annelie Moldin, R&D Manager Food & Energy, at Lantmännen.

Arla's health and nutrition expert Elin Boll agrees.

"Tomorrow's food must be tasty, nutritious, and environmentally sustainable. Contributing to long-term knowledge building and innovation in the food system is an essential piece of our work to create sustainable and healthy foods for future generations," she says.

The initiative is coordinated by Mehdi Abdollahi, Associate Professor at the Department of Life Sciences.

"The goal of the initiative is to develop innovative biotechnological routes towards the next generation of healthy and sustainable hybrid foods. In addition to close collaboration with Lantmännen and Arla, we will also collaborate with researchers across the department to leverage their expertise in biomass and advanced fermentation techniques, food technology and nutrition," says Mehdi Abdollahi.

The focus is to bridge traditional food production techniques, such as fermentation where microorganisms such as yeast and lactic acid bacteria are used with innovations in biotechnology to generate new knowledge and find new solutions to meet the challenges in health and sustainability of our food system.

"The current initiative, where we form a four-year consortium with industry connected to a new faculty position is a new exciting way to build long-term deep scientific collaboration with key actors to facilitate and accelerate both research and innovation in an applied field. This creates win-win," says Rikard Landberg, Head of the Division of Food and Nutrition Science at Chalmers, who initiated the setup of the collaboration.

One PhD student and two postdoctoral researchers will be recruited within the initiative. The researchers will be based at Chalmers, but both industry partners are involved in designing the projects together with the team at Chalmers in areas where they see future potential.

For more information, please contact:

Lantmännen's Press Office
Tel: +46 10 556 88 00
E-mail: [email protected]