ERA-NET: Exploring Shellfish By-products as sources of Blue Bioactivities

About 70% of annual shellfish production (1.5 Mt) ends up as by-products. Some is used for chitin/chitosan, much is used to make fertilizer / low value products or is sent to landfill, incinerated or dumped at sea. BlueShell addresses this problem by exploring 3 typical shellfish by-products; shrimp (Pandulus borealis) shells, crab (Cancer pagurus) shells and defect mussels (Mytilus edulis), for potential (bio)active compounds targeted at the sustainable supply of safe, healthy foods. Applying enzymatic hydrolysis or fermentation will enhance bioactivity through controlled proteolysis, lipolysis and production of low molecular weight compounds. It will facilitate fractionation through lipid-protein disconnections and demineralisation/de-proteinisation. Different starter cultures will be tested against a standardized enzymatic hydrolysis as reference. Peptide-, lipid- and chitin-enriched fractions will be explored for (bio)activities relevant to: (i) functional foods development; anti-inflammatory activity, (ii) food safety applications; antibacterial activity against selected food pathogens and antifouling, and (iii) plant health applications; horticultural stimulation and inhibitory activity against plant pathogens. Molecular characterisation of the most active fractions will help identify the specific compounds involved. BlueShell will investigate upscaling feasibility and market potential for the most interesting cases. An exploitation plan will be developed to ensure that initial BlueShell compounds are brought to market within 2 years of project completion. Project results will be disseminated widely to coastal communities, processors and others in the shellfish sector to encourage take up of the innovations. The consumer acceptance and desires towards by-products has been mapped in a large consumer investigation, in addition, environmentally friendly methods to scale chitin production from shells using mild chemicals has been evaluated and one products has been deemed as having commercial potential.

Prosjektert fokuserer på markedsbasert produktutvikling. Forskning på ulike biomasser førte identifiserte mulige produkter. Forbrukeroppfatninger og segmenter ble deretter involvert for å se på om hvordan ta disse produktene til marked. Større forbrukerundersøkelser der ulike produkter er blitt vurdert hos forbrukere basert på ulike måter å presentere produkter, e.g. bærekraftig, reduserer avfall e.l. Produktkategorier var mat, kosmetikk, helsekost etc. ble utført. I tillegg har vi utviklet metoder for å isolere bioaktive komponenter fra taskekrabbe, reker, blåskjell. Vi har sett på forurensninger og retensjon i sidestrømmer samt effekt av prosess. Måter å karakterisere kitin, samt utviklet miljøvennlige effektive metoder for kitinisolering fra krabbe. Prosjektet har lagt grunnlag for nye prosjekter innenfor EU, samt at det har gitt mange synergieffekter og bidratt til viktig informasjon til andre prosjekter rundt marine sidestrømmer i Norge.

Only a small fraction of the seafood biomass harvested for human consumption is currently used for food purposes; generally the main muscle part. The rest is usually used in the production of low value products or even wasted. Within BlueShell we will explore three typical shellfish by-products available in different parts of Europe; shrimp shells, crab shells and defect mussels/mussel shells for their contents of (bio)active compounds obtained by enzymatic and fermentative hydrolysis. We hypothesize that crustaceans and bivalves contain a unique set of molecules rendering them as suitable sources for several types of high value products. This hypothesis is based upon I) Bivalves have been identified as hosts for interesting anti-inflammatory compounds; unusual fatty acids like furan fatty acids and ?novel? omega-3´s. Anti-inflammatory properties have also been ascribed. II) Molluscs and crustaceans possess numerous antimicrobial peptides due to their open circulatory system and lack of an adaptive immune system. Many have recently been found and characterized in crabs. III) Mussel and crab shells share a special capability to counter fouling even when submerged in sea water. Biofilm formation is the first step in fouling where antifouling activities are expected. IV) Chitin and its derivates can potentially improve plant crop health and yield when incorporated in the soil. We therefore expect that crustacean host plant horticultural stimulants. Enzymatic and fermentative hydrolysis are believed to elegantly enhance the foreseen bioactive effects through the generation of new peptides and metabolites. It will also aid the biomass fractionation through liquefaction/macromolecular disconnections.For the end-product, BlueShell has a clear focus towards products close to the market and on products with a medium time to market for a diversity of markets (agriculture, food, plant health?) according to our current market insight and judgement.