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GEA Unveils Energy- and Waste-Reducing Tech for Plant-Based Production

March 24, 2025

At IFFA 2025, GEA will present a series of technological innovations designed to help food producers, particularly in the plant-based sector, optimize their operations while reducing environmental impact. With growing pressure on the food industry to balance efficiency, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness, GEA’s solutions provide the tools necessary to navigate today’s challenging market. Peter Lauwers, CEO of GEA Food & Healthcare Technologies, explained the company’s approach: “We are committed to helping our customers navigate today’s challenging market by providing innovative technology solutions that enhance production efficiency and sustainability.” GEA’s focus on maximizing raw material utilization, reducing packaging volume, and adopting recyclable materials in line with EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulations reflects its dedication to both operational efficiency and environmental responsibility. Maximizing efficiency in plant-based production …

Israel's Believer Meats has announced a strategic partnership with GEA Group to make cultivated meat more affordable, accessible, and sustainable

Manufacturing & Technology

Believer Meats & GEA Partner to “Produce Cultivated Meat Products at the Right Cost”

September 27, 2024

Israel’s Believer Meats and GEA Group, one of the world’s technology and equipment suppliers for food manufacturers, have announced a strategic partnership to make cultivated meat more affordable, accessible, and sustainable. The collaboration will focus on co-developing technologies and processes to improve the unit economics and sustainability of cultivated meat production, starting with chicken and potentially expanding to other products. The collaboration follows Believer Meats’ recent MOU with AGWA, Abu Dhabi’s new food and water cluster, and a notable collaboration with the Bezos Center for Sustainable Protein at NC State. Gustavo Burger, CEO of Believer Meats, shared, “Believer is on track to overcome the biggest obstacles to scalability. By partnering with GEA—one of the world’s foremost engineering and biotech equipment manufacturers—we are taking the next step in innovating …

Topics:

Bioreactors

growth medium

scaling

Sarita Chauhan, Tim Barnett, Mark Curphey, Thorsten Heidack, Evan Walker, Arpad Csay © GEA

Cultivated, Cell-Cultured & Biotechnology

GEA to Open New Facility for Plant-Based and Cell-Cultured Food Production

May 14, 2024

GEA, a global supplier of technology and equipment for food manufacturers, has initiated the construction of a new technology center in Janesville, Wisconsin. The center, which is planned to open in 2025, will focus on alternative proteins and be designed to enhance the production capabilities of plant-based, microbial, and cell-based foods. This facility will focus on the development of alternative solutions to traditional animal-derived products such as meat, dairy, seafood, and eggs. It aims to bridge the transition from laboratory-scale to full-scale commercial production by featuring pilot lines for cell cultivation and precision fermentation. During the groundbreaking ceremony on May 8, 2024, Arpad Csay, the head of GEA’s new food activities in North America, stated, “The technology center will offer foodtech businesses a platform to …

The PTC team carrying out tests © GEA Westfalia Separator Group GmbH

Manufacturing & Technology

GEA Unveils “Technological Milestone” for Food Biomanufacturing, Cutting Production Costs of Alt Proteins

March 21, 2024March 21, 2024

GEA, a global leader in engineering systems for the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries, is unveiling what it claims to be a “technological milestone” — the perfusion platform — at the Anuga FoodTec trade show in Cologne, Germany. The perfusion platform consists of the GEA Axenic-line bioreactors and the GEA kytero single-use separator, designed to enhance productivity and cost efficiency in cell cultivation and precision fermentation. The technology promises to level the price difference between conventional and alternative foods. Tatjana Krampitz, Head of New Food Technology Management at GEA, comments, “We see perfusion as one of the most promising technologies because it cuts the production cost of alternative proteins on several fronts.” Separating the cells GEA’s perfusion technology separates cells from already depleted nutrient solution and …

Topics:

Bioreactors

Manufacturing & Technology

GEA Announces $20 Million Investment in Wisconsin Alternative Protein Technology Center

February 14, 2024

GEA, a global leader in engineering systems for the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries, has revealed plans to invest EUR 18 million (approximately USD 20 million) in a state-of-the-art technology center focused on alternative proteins in Wisconsin, USA. The new facility, to be located on the GEA Campus in Janesville, will specialize in piloting microbial, cell-based, and plant-based food technologies. The construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2024, and with an anticipated opening in 2025, the center aims to bridge the current gap in the market for industrial-scale production of alternative proteins. The technology center will help gear the company up to support the industry’s anticipated growth, as indicated in a GEA survey last year, which found that chefs expect a quarter of meals …

GEA opens New Food Center to develop cultivated meat and precision fermentation products

Image courtesy of GEA

Company News

GEA Opens Alt Protein Pilot Center, Celebrates 60th Anniversary at ProPack Asia

June 13, 2023

GEA has inaugurated a central hub for alt proteins — featuring pilot lines for cell cultures and microbial fermentation — to test and produce cultivated meat and animal-free dairy alternatives. Located in Hildesheim, Germany, the New Food Application and Technology Center of Excellence (ATC) will enable customers to “fast-track” innovations from the lab to commercial-scale manufacturing. “Establishing and scaling up a new food production facility is a major task,” said Heinz Jürgen Kroner, Senior Vice President of New Food at GEA. “In many cases, new food producers are still stuck at the lab scale – with the hygiene, aseptic, and process requirements that involves. On the other hand, industrial-scale manufacturing presents much greater technical and financial challenges,” he continued. Commercial feasibility According to GEA, the center …

Topics:

Pilot facility

Manufacturing & Technology

How a Meat Processing Machine With an 80-Year History Became Widely Used in Alt Meat Production

May 4, 2023

Over the decades, the CutMaster meat processing machine developed by German production technology giant GEA has evolved to become widely used in the production of plant-based meats. The first iteration of the machine, then called the Propeller Blitz, was developed 80 years ago to cut and blend sausage meat. As demand increased, the machine was made larger with two independently driven knife heads. By the 1970s, the machine could automate tasks such as loading and discharging. Over the next few decades, it evolved to be Internet-connected, with the ability to monitor speed, temperature, and service issues. The speed of the knife heads was increased, and their configuration could now be altered depending on the recipe. Increased flexibility The machine — now known as the CutMaster …

Studies & Numbers

GEA Chef Survey Predicts a Quarter of Meals Will Contain Alt Proteins by 2040

January 12, 2023

A survey by GEA, a supplier of systems and components to the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries, has found that chefs believe a quarter of meals could contain alt proteins by 2040. Of the 1000 chefs surveyed, 43% said that between 26 and 50% of meals would be prepared with alt proteins by this date, while almost a quarter of participants believed the figure could be over 50%. 90% said they were already using alt proteins, and a third were using them to a significant extent. High growth in demand Additionally, 90% of chefs had seen growing interest in meat and dairy alternatives, with over 40% saying demand was high. 95% believed diners would demand more plant-based options in the coming years, and 45% expected …

©GEA Group

Company News

Production Technology Giant GEA Says it is Riding the Alt-Meat Wave

October 26, 2021

GEA, one of the leading suppliers of processing and packaging solutions for food, which reportedly “plays a part in producing every third chicken nugget, one quarter of the processed milk, and every other litre of beer in the world”, says it is becoming increasingly involved in the production of alt protein. The German company says it has significant experience in extracting protein from plant material and processing a mixture of high-quality ingredients. Its technology portfolio helps processors to create meatless foods based on various sources, including: Frozen vegetables or vegetable-based mixes Texturized vegetable protein (TVP) Soy or wheat-based protein Single-cell protein (e.g., mycoprotein) Other plant-based protein In the meat-free segment, customers’ needs are different compared to the demands of the original meat processing business, explains …

Interviews

GEA: “GEA Food Solutions Has All the Ingredients to Help You Lead in a World of Changing Tastes”

February 11, 2021February 11, 2021

Founded in 1881 and headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany, GEA Food Solutions is one of the largest suppliers of technology in the world. Vegconomist had the pleasure of speaking with the company’s food application technologist, Nils Beyer, about GEA’s entrance into the meat replacement industry. Can you please give us a brief overview of GEA Food Solutions? GEA is an international engineering company and a major supplier for the food processing industry. Our focus is on providing leading equipment technologies, sharing process know-how and application expertise for meat and seafood, pure vegetable and meat replacement products. GEA Food Solutions has all the ingredients to help you lead in a world of changing tastes. Which equipment does GEA use for meat replacement products? Please explain the …

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information for decision-makers