Bühler, a Swiss technology company, recently launched its new food innovation hub in Uzwil, Switzerland, bringing together a varied variety of competencies and setting a new stage for product and process development.

In addition to the Extrusion Application Center, four new Application & Training Centers (ATCs) are set to open for business: the Flavor Creation Center, Food Creation Center, Protein Application Center, and Energy Recovery Center. The new ATCs allow for a circular economy approach to food production by connecting the entire value chain. Bühler’s state-of-the-art facilities and a team of professionals provide customers with the perfect setting for managing market shifts and creating the food of the future.

“In this world where requirements are changing so fast, customers need flexibility and creativity to adapt their products addressing key issues such as sustainability, the use of local raw materials, healthy diets, and affordability. With the completion of the new Application & Training Centers, we can cover the entire scope of production, from different raw materials to multiple types of finished products. We can offer our customers enormous flexibility and the options they need to disrupt their markets,” Johannes Wick, CEO of Grains & Food at Bühler Group, said.

This location has evolved into a one-stop shop for Bühler’s clients globally with the introduction of the new Flavor Creation Center, Food Creation Center, Protein Application Center, and Energy Recovery Center in addition to the Application & Training Centers now in operation in Uzwil.

“The opening of the Application & Training Centers is a milestone in our journey to support our customers and partners, to create a more sustainable food system. At the new ATCs customers have access to a unique combination of technology and expertise,” Ian Roberts, CTO at Bühler Group, mentioned.

The Protein Application Center has Wet Isolation and Fractionation Techniques for Starches Separation

Under one roof, the new Protein Application Center offers solutions for consumer product and component processing. The center will facilitate the accumulation of knowledge and the advancement of methods for producing plant-based foods, including meat alternatives, beverages, and ingredients. The center, which will link the Grain Innovation Center, Extrusion Application Center, Pasta Application Center, Food Creation Center, Flavor Creation Center, and Energy Recovery Center, is run in partnership with Bühler’s partner, Endeco. It is outfitted with the newest wet isolation and fractionation techniques for the separation of protein, starches, and fibers.

With tight ties to the recently established Protein Application Center, the Extrusion Application Center – which conducts 80 – 90 trials annually – offers a singular chance to optimize the entire process solution, from raw materials to finished goods. Customers can test novel recipes, product shapes, and textures, as well as food and animal feed, in this multipurpose laboratory.

Annually, the Application & Training Centers in Uzwil collectively generate approximately 550 tons of biomass. Bühler and its strategic partner, Vyncke, constructed the Energy Recovery Center, which doubles as a heating facility for Bühler’s headquarters, to make the best use of the waste and by-products created by the ATCs. Additionally, the Energy Recovery Center serves as a testing and demonstration ground for clients wishing to use side streams to lower their energy expenses, waste output, and carbon footprint.

“The energy generation from biomass as an integrated part of process solutions for food has not been systematically developed and therefore has an enormously high potential, both from a business and sustainability perspective. The Bühler-Vyncke Energy Recovery Center is an important step for us in implementing our sustainability goals and is intended to serve as an example for energy recovery options in food and feed production,” Johannes Wick also declared.