Varun Gore, Daniel Tusé, Anatoli Giritch, Somen Nandi, Karen A McDonald
While the market benchmark price for the commercial extract (Talin®) is $7,000/kg, the analysis of the recombinant process projects a unit production cost of $766/kg for Thaumatin II with 95% purity (Thaumatin II/total soluble protein) and 5% moisture content, for a facility capable of producing 50 metric tons (MT) of Thaumatin II annually.
INTRODUCTION: A global rise in population and excessive consumption of dietary sugars present major environmental and public health challenges. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends limiting free sugar consumption to less than 5% of total caloric intake for maximum health benefits. Substituting added sugar with low- or no-calorie sweeteners offers a viable alternative to achieve this target. Thaumatin II is a natural, non-caloric, high-intensity sweet-tasting protein, traditionally extracted as a mixture of up to 5 thaumatins from the fruit of Thaumatococcus daniellii, a plant native to West Africa, that can now be produced recombinantly in the seeds of temperate plants. Thaumatin II exhibits exceptional sweetness intensity (10,000-13,000 times that of sucrose, w/w) with minimal off-flavor characteristics.
METHODS: This study presents a techno-economic analysis for the large-scale recombinant production of Thaumatin II using transgenic Nicotiana tabacum seeds as a biomanufacturing platform. We also examine the impact of product purity on production cost and present a process mass intensity (PMI) evaluation and environmental, health, and safety (EHS) assessment to characterize overall process sustainability and environmental impact.
RESULTS: While the market benchmark price for the commercial extract (Talin®) is $7,000/kg, the analysis of the recombinant process projects a unit production cost of $766/kg for Thaumatin II with 95% purity (Thaumatin II/total soluble protein) and 5% moisture content, for a facility capable of producing 50 metric tons (MT) of Thaumatin II annually.
DISCUSSION: This study indicates that production of Thaumatin II in bioengineered plants can deliver significant economic and environmental advantages compared to traditional sweeteners and T. daniellii extraction methods, supporting the global effort to reduce added sugar consumption through sustainable, natural sweetener alternatives.