Project Overview
The Challenge
Food processing across Europe generates large volumes of sidestreams that are frequently used in low-value uses such as fertiliser or animal feed, despite their potential as valuable industrial feedstocks.
At the same time, the chemical sector remains heavily dependent not only on fossil-based raw materials, but also on oleochemical feedstocks derived from imported vegetable oils, including palm oil, for products used throughout everyday life. Developing sustainable, locally sourced alternatives can help reduce this dependence while making better use of resources already available within Europe.
Turning an underused sidestream into a reliable source of sustainable chemicals takes more than a promising idea. It requires a proven, cost-efficient process that can perform successfully at industrial scale.
It requires a proven, cost-efficient process that can perform successfully at industrial scale.
The Solution
The project addresses this gap by retrofitting an existing potato processing biorefinery rather than constructing a new facility. Because the plant already handles the potato juice that becomes its feedstock, this approach moves faster and with a smaller initial footprint than a greenfield alternative would require.
At full operation, the retrofitted facility converts potato juice into purified medium-chain fatty acids: versatile chemical building blocks with applications reaching well beyond the food sector, from cleaning products to fragrance ingredients.
Potato sidestream
Existing feedstock on site
Retrofitted biorefinery
Industrial-scale conversion
Purified MCFAs
Market-ready building blocks
Who Benefits from PACE?
PACE creates value across the value chain — from industry and agriculture to policy, research, and the communities where the retrofit takes place.
The chemical industry
Gains a proven, market-ready source of renewable chemicals that reduces reliance on fossil feedstocks.
Food processors
Gain a higher-value use for a sidestream currently sold as low-value fertiliser or feed.
Policymakers
Gain a concrete example of the circular bio-based economy in action, aligned with Horizon Europe and CBE JU objectives.
Researchers
Gain validated, industrial-scale data on retrofitting and bio-based chemical production.
Society
Gains lower emissions, new local jobs, and a more resilient industrial base less dependent on fossil resources.
