Revolutionising gluten-safe food production

Background

Prozymi Biolabs Ltd, an Edinburgh based biotechnology start-up was founded with a mission to revolutionise gluten-free food production. With a significant portion of the UK population affected by gluten-related disorders, including coeliac disease, gluten sensitivity and IBS, there is an increased demand for gluten-free products. However, existing gluten-free options often lack the taste, texture, and nutritional value of traditional gluten-containing foods, posing challenges for consumers.

Scientists from Prozymi Biolabs are testing a new enzyme technology that degrades gliadin, the protein that causes food sensitivities.

The Journey

Since its inception in early 2021 Prozymi Biolabs has experienced rapid growth and made a significant impact in the biotech world – more specifically in gluten-safe technology.

Co-founders Ioannis Stasinopoulos and Andreas Andreou were awarded their PhD’s at the University of Edinburgh and came up with the idea of developing a pioneering method of making gluten-safe bread while baking sourdough bread in their spare time. Receiving seed funding through the University of Edinburgh’s Data Driven Entrepreneurship program, which supports high growth start-ups associated with the university, gave Prozymi Biolabs the kick-start required to embark on their journey revolutionising the gluten-free bread experience.

Following an introduction via the student enterprise team at Edinburgh Innovations, Louise Arnold, Business Engagement Executive at Interface, has supported the Prozymi Biolabs team since they started, helping them navigate the academic research and development landscape, making relevant connections into universities, support networks and funding.

Some of these connections and projects include:

• Queen Margaret University and the SRUC Thrive Programme in support of product development, planning, marketing, pitching, nutrition, food legislation and access to general business support information.
• The Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) Accelerator Programme, to guide and assist them on best practice, direct innovation support and peer to peer learning. They continued to collaborate with IBioIC, through the scale up of the gliadin-degrading enzymes using IBioIC’s scale up facilities at Heriot Watt University.
• Two projects with University of Aberdeen’s Applied Health Science students: one to identify the causes behind gluten disorders, the parts of gluten responsible, the key symptoms, diagnostic methods, and potential treatments used. And the second on gluten awareness, researching gluten-related topics such as gluten intolerance, celiac disease, and gluten-free diets analysing data collected to identify patterns, trends, and key insights regarding gluten-related issues.
• A collaboration with University of Stirling’s Business School students on developing marketing strategy and market and competitor analysis.
• A partnership with the Proteomics and Metabolomics Facility at the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute, funded via the Healthier Products Innovation Fund, allowed Prozymi Biolabs to use their mass spectrometry equipment to develop a robust process for sequencing and characterizing gluten-degrading enzymes. This collaboration enabled the identification and expression of candidate enzymes, with a focus on specificity and efficiency in degrading harmful gluten peptides while preserving the integrity of bread’s texture and flavour.

The Benefits

Prozymi Biolabs are creating employment opportunities, generating collaborations with university facilities and provide experiential learning opportunities for students through Interface support. The project outcomes could yield multidimensional benefits in the future as follows:

• Social: Consumers will benefit from high-quality gluten-free products at lower prices, making them affordable for low-income social classes.
• Economic: The low production cost of gluten-free products made with their technology will alleviate NHS financial burden for prescribed goods to coeliacs and help products of those higher in the supply chain, such as local wheat and barley suppliers to reach the gluten-free market.
• Environmental: Reduced reliance on imported naturally gluten-free materials, used for existing gluten-free products, will minimise transport fuels and align with government priorities for carbon footprint reduction.
• Political: Support the government’s strategy for locally sourced wheat and barley grains to increase nation’s self-sufficiency and resilience.

Benefits to Prozymi Biolabs

• Collaboration has fostered an innovative environment, leading to the development of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) through identification and characterisation of the gluten degrading enzymes. This has also enhanced overall productivity within the company.
• By pooling resources and expertise across the university networks, has led to increased R&D efficiency, cost savings and faster project completion. The collaborations have improved Prozymi Biolab’s market position enabling the development of cutting-edge solutions, while increasing their market valuation.
• Potential applications in brewing, animal feed, and pharmaceutical industries.
• This innovation has also led to the selection of Prozymi Biolabs for IBioIC’s Biotech Innovators incubator, University of Edinburgh’s Venture Builder Incubator, Barclay’s AgriTech Bridge program and Carbon 13 Venture Launchpad program opening avenues for further academic and research collaborations.
• Awarded Innovation of the Year at the Scottish Knowledge Exchange Awards 2024.

Benefits to Academics

• The partnership has provided the University of Edinburgh’s Proteomics & Metabolomics Facility with an opportunity to apply analytical chemistry tools in the food sector.
• Collaborating with the organisation has opened additional funding opportunities for the universities, allowing for expanded research capabilities.
• The collaboration has offered students the chance to engage directly with industry, enriching their learning experience and professional development.

Next Steps

Prozymi Biolabs’ innovative approach to gluten-free bread production has the potential of transforming the food industry, offering consumers high-quality gluten-free products with improved taste, texture, and nutritional value. Through collaboration with academic partners and participation in incubator programs, the company is poised to further advance its research and development efforts, paving the way for a new era of gluten-free innovation.

Next steps for Prozymi Biolabs include:

• Continued collaboration with the University of Edinburgh’s Proteomics and Metabolomics facility and Edinburgh Genome Foundry has resulted in an established pipeline for screening and expression of gluten-degrading enzymes which could be further developed to generate new promising candidates in the future for the needs of beer, pharma, or animal feed industries.
• New academic collaborations with Queen Margaret University Scottish Centre for Food Development and Innovation, to provide equipment and expertise for small-scale proof-of-concept gluten-free bread production; the School of Physics of the University of Edinburgh for potential collaboration for testing the rheological properties of initial gluten-free bread batches.

• Do you want to hear about future innovation in the north east?
• Interested in the new Seedpod development and how SRUC can support Food and drink businesses?
• Are you interested in leading-edge food & drink associated research?
• Do you want to hear about potential collaboration opportunities?

Then why not join this SRUC event which will showcase the breadth of their food & drink activities from product development & innovation to industry-focussed research, consultancy and education. From meat, fish & plant-based protein, food security, processing production, emerging technologies, & political drivers, to innovative food & drink product development – food & drink is very much a focus at SRUC. If you’re a food & drink business this event will give you a better understanding of how SRUC / SAC Consulting can help you and will also showcase some examples of products that we have helped to develop.

Opportunity North East will join SRUC at this event and provide an update on the transformational SeedPod project that is currently under construction at SRUC Craibstone. It has been developed with industry and partners and has been set up to grow the food and drink manufacturing sector in the region and nationally. Seedpod’s facilities and support programmes will put businesses at the forefront of innovation, productivity and sustainability, increasing high-value exports and creating new jobs. It will help businesses and the sector deliver low-carbon production and contribute to net-zero goals. SeedPod is due to open in late 2024 and is co-funded by ONE, the Scottish and UK Governments and is a key industry innovation project within the Aberdeen City Region Deal. SRUC is a strategic delivery partner in the project and is providing the site for SeedPod on its Craibstone campus.

SRUC welcomes this development on its Craibstone campus given its alignment to SRUC’s strategic growth strategy and food & drink expertise.

Lunch will be provided between 12:30pm – 1:30pm