In Proteins for All, a biotech company founded in 2022, will build the first integrated plant for plant proteins in Spain in Curtis. The plant will process legumes and other raw materials of plant origin using a hybrid protein extraction and transformation technology that combines green chemistry with biotechnology.

With an expected investment of 16.9 million euros, its aim is to produce concentrated, isolated and hydrolysed functional plant proteins for human food applications. In fact, its mission is to respond to one of society's greatest challenges. "Our project was created with the aim of helping the current food system face challenges such as overpopulation. Natural resources are limited, and we need to make the most of them to feed the growing population in a sustainable and healthy way. Plant proteins, especially those derived from legumes, make it possible to feed more people with fewer resources, and their combination with animal proteins, such as milk proteins, means that we can offer society an optimal solution," explains Ana Caamaño Vara, founding partner and managing director of the initiative.

Born in Muros and with a solid professional background in the biotechnology sector, Caamaño is also a director of Cleariver Ventures, a venture capital company focused on investing in the biotechnology industry. She has also worked for one of the world's leading food ingredient companies, Irish brand Kerry.

"With this project, we are in the agri-food and biotechnology sectors, which is strategic for Galicia. We will be innovators in the food sector, providing high quality ingredients with full traceability and international projection, which will make our Community visible as a foodtech benchmark in the field of plant proteins," she says. In addition, economic impact is crucial.

"We aim to create more than 300 direct and indirect jobs," says Héctor Ara Sanz, partner and general manager of corporate strategy and investor relations for the initiative, who has more than 30 years' experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, and is also the founder of Suanfarma.

A commitment to sustainability and the circular economy

In Proteins for All's production facilities in Curtis will have 3 production lines: Origin (lentil, chickpea, fava bean and pea protein concentrates), Imagine (plant protein blends and special formations for sports and clinical nutrition applications) and Next (protein functional modification line). Production will be carried out at low temperatures with energy optimisation and heat and water reuse. In addition, the plant has been designed according to the concept of circular economy, where the by-products generated will be transformed into high value-added ingredients for sectors such as animal or pet food and aquaculture.

They are currently in the R&D and innovation phase, developing the functionalities of the plant proteins and replicating their production process in the pilot plant in Seville for optimisation. In addition to this, they are finalising the design of a circular economy process that will allow revaluation of the by-products generated in the industrial plant.

"From an industrial point of view, we have completed the study for the preliminary project and the basic engineering, and in the next few weeks we will proceed with purchasing the land so that we can start work in the first quarter of 2024, as planned," explains Caamaño. Launch and production are scheduled for the last quarter of 2025.

Priority Entrepreneurial Initiative for Galicia

Choosing Galicia as the location for the plant was no coincidence, although Ana Caamaño admits to being excited about being able to return to there after spending most of her professional career outside the region. "The Curtis-Teixeiro industrial park was considered the best location, compared to four other possible sites in the national territory, on the basis of a number of objective and studied criteria," she explains. Caamaño citied good transportation links, human capital, Galicia's solid biotech ecosystem and the excellent water quality, which is fundamental to the production process, as well as the synergies with other industries in the area as key factors in the final decision. In fact, Inleit, a company specialising in the extraction of milk proteins, is already operating in Curtis, so the opening of the In Protein for All plant will make the Teixeiro industrial park one of the most important food protein plants in Spain.

Finally, the support of the Regional Government of Galicia was another decisive factor. "It is a project that we have negotiated with other autonomous communities and the Regional Government of Galicia was quicker and more diligent in managing everything. We have been working with people who are very committed to adding value to Galicia and who are backing technology and this sector," says Héctor Ara.

"The declaration of Priority Entrepreneurial Initiative (PEI) was key to our decision to implement in Galicia because of our commitment to innovation and healthy eating, sustainability and the circular economy, as well as the recognition of our experience with over fifteen years of work in the plant protein sector at international level. The declaration of our project as a PEI means that the Regional Government of Galicia will support our planned implementation deadlines, so that the industrialisation and commercial launch and production phases can become a reality by the end of 2025," says Caamaño.