Miller Magazine Issue: 154 October 2022

74 MILLER / OCTOBER 2022 protect transported goods. It is starch that provides this strength. The huge advantage over plastic packaging, for example, is cardboard’s high level of recyclability and en- vironmental compatibility. Recycled cardboard contains around 10 percent starch, which acts as an adhesive hold- ing the cellulose fibers together and providing stability. Biorefinery would appear to be a vast area with huge potential for de- velopment. What is Bühler’s contribu- tion to this growing sector? Biorefinery is in the center of Bühler’s main focus areas. A significant amount of grain is processed in biorefineries and Bühler is one of the world’s lead- ing technology companies in grain pro- cessing. But the finished products that are produced in a biorefinery are prob- ably of even greater importance. Here, Bühler offers an exceptional platform for producers and investors: with solutions for animal nutrition, aqua feed, pet food, bakery and confectionery, extrusion of meat analogues and, more recently, our innovative insects business, Bühler provides holistic solutions for these promising products and markets. What do bakeries and insects have to do with biorefinery? Take sponge cake or tasty bread - the glucose used for sweetening cake and the wheat gluten used to improve the baking properties of bread flour are both products that come from a starch plant. With insects, we have great up- cycling opportunity in the value chain of a Biorefinery plant. In future, a significant amount of our animal protein require- ments will be met through protein pro- duction at large insect facilities. This be- cause of insect’s high sustainable and low ecological footprint on protein pro- duction. Recently, Bühler commissioned one of the first large-scale industrial plants for insect protein production. The feed for these insects can be produced from by-products of a cereal-based biorefinery. The protein obtained from the insect plant can then be processed into a high-quality aqua feed, with extru- sion technology from Bühler. So is biorefinery becoming increasingly important for Bühler? Yes, it is. The key to success in a growing market for biorefinery plants is to combine each solution to a high sustainable and profitable value chain. The example of in- sects shows how a sustainable and intelligent combination of a wheat starch mill and insects can play an important role in tackling the major challenges that our planet faces with its growing population. Biorefinery is in the center of Bühler’s main focus areas. A significant amount of grain is pro- cessed in biorefineries and Bühler is one of the world’s leading techno- logy companies in grain processing. TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM Mill has to be fully automated and operate safely at high capacity in order to increase efficiency and improve produc- tivity. Bühler Mercury MES, a next-generation plant control, makes it possible.