Case Study: NutriGain
Posted on
Working Together
Vitamin D deficiency is at an all-time high in the UK at nearly 1 in 5 adults, and rising, only highlighted by lockdown and the pandemic due to lack of sunlight (its main source). One solution is to increase dietary intake through fortifying common foods. But with environmental agendas rising globally, it needs to be done in an eco-friendly way.
Mushrooms provide a great way to aid nutrition. They are a low carbon, vegan friendly, year-round crop, well-suited to enrichment with many vitamins and minerals. They are a popular protein source and meat substitute making them an important part of climate action too. Reducing meat consumption can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and many people are changing their diets.14% of people in the UK eat meat-free diets and this is expected to double over the next few years.
The current enrichment method for vitamin D in Mushrooms uses UV light, is energy intensive and slows production, meaning cost to businesses and environment. 14 tonnes of CO2eq emissions are released per year from operating UV-enrichment at just one business. The equivalent to driving 322,000 miles. UV is also only applied to brown mushrooms as it spoils whites, which make up the majority of the market.
In an Eco-I North West Project, Masters by Research student Michael, is working with NutriGain to develop a novel ‘water-on’ supplement for mushrooms during growth to replace UV-enrichment. This new product hopes to be an improvement by adding more vitamins and minerals alongside vitamin D, such as the similarly deficient B12 and selenium, whilst also being applicable to white mushrooms and reducing emissions. The product is based on similar supplements produced by NutriGain which also increase yield, size and shelf-life. “People have become increasingly aware how vitamin D is key to our health.” says Michael. “Fortifying foods is a great way to achieve better nutrition and benefit public health, but it needs to be done in a low energy and low carbon way to keep it cost effective, sustainable, and accessible.”
Related Blogs
Disclaimer
The opinions expressed by our bloggers and those providing comments are personal, and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of Lancaster University. Responsibility for the accuracy of any of the information contained within blog posts belongs to the blogger.
Back to blog listing