Benefits of enzymes
Sustainable solution
Enzymes are enabling various industries to guarantee the quality and stability of its products with increased production efficiency. They also help provide environment-friendly products to consumers thanks to using less energy, water and raw materials and generating less waste.
Most industries are confronted with production waste that can be hazardous for nature. This is not the case with enzymes as they are fully biodegradable. When industrial enzymes have done their job, they break down into amino acids that are naturally recycled in the environment.
Enzymes also help to improve resource efficiency in the food chain by reducing processing losses.
High quality
Enzymes meet the demands of the modern society for convenience – without compromising health and safety.
Enzymes enable the manufacturing of high quality products, increasing the yields and avoiding unwanted by-products. For example, cotton treated with enzymes does not go fluffy; it looks better and lasts longer. In the juice industry, enzymes make the fruits easier to press and the juice clearer.
Finally, enzymes can also improve the health profile of food and help respond to special dietary needs. For example, they facilitate the production of low-salt processed meats, or enable millions of people with lactose intolerance to digest dairy products.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has estimated the efficiency improvements that enzymes would enable in food and traditional industries.
The results show that by 2030 enzymes could e.g. save
- up to 139 MtCO2e* in the food industry and
- up to 65 MtCO2e in traditional industries (detergents, textiles, pulp and paper).
This is equivalent to the CO2 emissions of consuming 430 million barrels of oil or taking off the road nearly 40 million cars.
(Source: WWF, Industrial biotechnology More than green fuel in a dirty economy? Exploring the transformational potential of industrial biotechnology on the way to a green economy, 2009)
* Million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent
