In this time of dire need, Sepragen team is doing its part to solve the problem of COVID-19. We are providing equipment on an expedited basis to a company developing a vaccine for COVID- 19.

Health Enhancing Human Nutrition

Dairy and Nutrition Application.
Processes for Health Enhancing Human Nutritionals

Sepragen has pioneered the three patented processes for the isolation of high value nutritionals on a commercial scale.

Sepralac®

Sepradebitt®

Sepraflavone®

The Sepralac® Process enables the isolation of high value whey protein isolate, alphalactalbumin, lactoferrin and CGMP for use in infant formulae, performance foods and other functional foods. Commercial plants capable of processing over 100,000 liters of whey per day have been commissioned.

Sepradebitt® process to debitter and de-acify citrus juice and the Sepraflavone® Process to isolate the natural “phyto” estrogen of Isoflavone from soy are currently in commercial evaluations with potential licenses.

The Sepralac Process

The development of the market for special constituents in milk offers some very interesting opportunities to the dairy industry and to the many different industries using such constituents in their formulated products.

These products are unique in their applications. It offers new possibilities in the search for an improved and better lifestyle and for curing illnesses and health problems by using ingredients extracted from natural sources. The Sepralac® process has made it possible to isolate certain proteins from whey in a cost-effective manner, which is easily scalable to the requirements of the market.

>A major producer in New Zealand is the first licensee and is already producing products. In Europe the first licensee is a major Irish ingredient producer.

Sepragen offers the technology to a limited number of producers and expects to have seven licensees around the world within the next couple of years.

Applications of Whey Based Ingredients

Ingredient Attribute Application
a -lactalbumin Tryptophan content
Essential amino acids
Branched chain amino acids
Humanized baby food
Nutritional products
Sports drink formulations
Lactoferrin Sequesters iron
Antimicrobial agent in body
Immunostimulating effect
Infant formula
Nutritional bars
Sports & performance products
Medical products
Lactoperoxidase Antibacterial agent in body Shampoo
Toothpaste
Acne preparation
Glycomicropeptides Body weight management
Appetite suppressant
Management of phenylketonuria
Sports performance products
Medical products

The Process

The process for producing WPI, alpha-enriched WPI, beta-enriched WPI, lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase and glycomicropeptides is shown in the figure below: In order to capture the proteins on the resin, the pH of the whey is adjusted to a low pH. This will give all the proteins a positive charge, which will bind it to the negatively charged SepraPrep-S resin. The pretreated and pH-adjusted whey is loaded on the column after the column has been equilibrated. Then the column is washed with water and the proteins are eluted by means of patented ‘Opposing Salt and pH’ gradients. The process fractions are processed in an ultra- and diafiltration plant, where the protein is concentrated to 25-27% total solids, while the permeate containing the buffer salt solution is processed in a reverse osmosis plant, concentrating it to 2-3% solids for re-use. The protein concentrate is dried in a spray dyer, which can be of the tall-form type using an inlet air temperature of 180°C.

Sepralac® Process Economics

Assumptions

Volume

250,000 liters of whey per day

Whey type

Sweet cheese whey, pre-treated, past., normal comp.

Processing time

24 hours per day, 300 days a year

Products Market Price US D/Kg
Permeate 0.18
Whey Protein Isolate 7.5
a –enriched WPI 15
ß-enriched WPI 9
Lactoferrin 250
Lactoperoxidase 300
Annual Prod. (Kg) Case 1 Case 2 Case 3
WPI 364,500 362,800
a –enriched WPI 145,120
ß-enriched WPI 217,680
Lactoferrin 1,200 1,200
Lactoperoxidase 500 500
Permeate 4,110,000 4,110,000 4,110,000
Annual Prod. (USD) Case 1  Case 2 Case 3
WPI 2,773,750 2,721,000
a–enriched WPI 2,176,800
ß-enriched WPI 1,959,120
Lactoferrin 300,000 300,000
Lactoperoxidase 150,000 150,000
Total 2,773,750 3,171,000 4,585,920
Permeate* 739,800 739,800 739,800
Annual Prod. CostsUSD
Depreciation190,625
Resin costs150,000
Membrane system OP80,000
costs 
Chemicals120,000
Water30,000
Energy110,000
Waste treatment25,000
Cost of whey (.5 c/L)375,000
Labor288,000
Drying costs91,125
Total1,469,750
InvestmentUSD
3* 500 L RFC columns675,000
Tanks, pumps, piping200,000
Automation and valves350,000
Membrane systems300,000
Total1,525,000
Annual Gross Case 1 Case 2 Case 3
Margin, USD Process A Process B Process C
Revenue 2,773,750 3,171,000 4,585,920
Production costs 1,469,750 1,690,210 1,763,700
Gross margin 1,264,000 1,480,790 2,822,220
news
You may also like
Browse All
January 2023
Sepragen ships
In the creation of bio-pharmaceutical drugs, cells are genetically modified to produce some compound shown by research to have a desired effect in a treatment program.
Learn more
December 2022
Sepragen completes installation
Sepragen’s products or tools are used to manufacture over 24 FDA approved drugs including Kogenate®, Alphanate®, Neupogen®, and GammaGrand®* along with a multitude...
Learn more
July 2022
Sepragen presents at the Recovery Conference in Rome
Sepragen has pioneered the three patented processes for the isolation of high value nutritionals on a commercial scale. The Sepralac® Process enables the isolation of Lactoferrin...
Learn more