INTERVIEW FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE September 2024 73 Kathrin Schilling, Managing Director at BioPowder: “Pressing the olive to obtain the oil produces hundreds of thousands of tons of by-products, i.e. pulp, peel and olive stones, every year. These leftovers are very valuable and should not go to waste. Moreover, the olive offers great potential for purely mechanical processing without the need for chemicals. The resulting powders are therefore a sustainable alternative to replace industrially manufactured cellulose, which has typically been added as a fiber component to reduce the content of fats and sugars and to make feed formulations more digestible.” The needs of today's world necessitate the most efficient use of existing resources. Making the best use of every resource that nature offers us in every aspect for a sustainable future means a significant value gain in terms of the circular economy. Malta-based BioPowder is one of the companies that create value in terms of resource utilization and circular economy. As part of the agro-industrial ecosystem, the company transforms olive and fruit processing by-products in different sizes into biological ingredients that can be used in different areas, including animal feed. Kathrin Schilling, Managing Director of BioPowder, answered our questions about this transformed product line and its use in the feed sector. Ms. Schilling, firstly, could you give us some information about BioPowder? What can you tell us about your company's services and target audience? BioPowder is an upcycling specialist that transforms olive and fruit-processing by-products (meaning the fruit stones and shells) into micronized powders and particles. The company is part of an agro-industrial ecosystem that seeks to valorise side streams as a way of eliminating waste. Our prior experience in the biomass industry has allowed us to build trusted relationships with raw material suppliers, meaning that we collect our raw materials right at the source. We then transform those raw materials by mechanical means only, i.e. without any chemicals or synthetic additives. Our producCIRCULARITY, UPCYCLING AND SUSTAINABILITY WITH OLIVES AS A FEED INGREDIENT
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