Microbial Biomass-Based Feed Products
High protein and high nutritional products comprising a mix of specific bacterial species, and methods of producing the same, are provided. Products can be produced via a co-culture of axenic source strains grown on simple gas feedstocks, such as carbon dioxide, hydrogen and oxygen, as can be provided by industrial waste gases. A consortium of bacterial strains specially selected for this purpose is cultured in an aqueous culture medium.
1 . A method for producing a biomass, the method comprising:
providing a gas mixture to a consortium of bacteria and microbes in a bioreactor, the consortium including at least three of Cupriavidus necator, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, Rhodopsuedamonas palustris, Rhodobacter capsulatus, Bacillus subtilis , and Bacillis magaterium , the gas mixture including each of hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, and oxygen gas, whereby hydrogen is metabolized by at least some of the bacteria of the consortium and growth of the consortium occurs solely by the fixation of carbon dioxide;
harvesting cells of the bacteria and microbes from the bioreactor; and
drying the solids to yield the biomass.
2 . The method of claim 1 further comprising separately receiving hydrogen gas and flue gas, the flue gas including both the carbon dioxide gas and the oxygen gas, and mixing the hydrogen gas and flue gas to produce the gas mixture.
3 . The method of claim 2 wherein, mixing the hydrogen gas and flue gas comprises diluting the flue gas approximately 5-fold with the hydrogen gas.
4 . The method of claim 1 wherein one of the hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, and oxygen gas is introduced separately into the bioreactor from the other two gases.
5 . The method of claim 1 wherein the consortium of bacteria consists solely of Cupriavidus necator, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, Rhodopsuedamonas palustris, Rhodobacter capsulatus , and Bacillus subtilis.
6 . The method of claim 1 wherein at least one of the bacterium of the consortium is of a strain that has been adapted over multiple generations to be tolerant of a flue gas, and wherein the gas mixture includes the flue gas.
7 . The method of claim 1 further comprising, before providing the gas mixture to the consortium, adapting a bacterium of the consortium to a flue gas by growing multiple successive generations of the bacterium in the presence of the flue gas to produce an adapted bacterium, wherein the gas mixture includes the flue gas.
8 . The method of claim 1 wherein one of the bacterium of the consortium expresses a carotenoid.
9 . A product made by the method of claim 1 .
10 . A method for producing a feed product comprising:
producing a biomass by
providing a gas mixture to a consortium of bacteria and microbes in a bioreactor, the consortium including at least three of Cupriavidus necator, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, Rhodopsuedamonas palustris, Rhodobacter capsulatus, Bacillus subtilis , and Bacillis magaterium , the gas mixture including each of hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide gas, and oxygen gas, whereby hydrogen is metabolized by at least some of the bacteria of the consortium and growth of the consortium occurs solely by the fixation of carbon dioxide,
harvesting cells of the bacteria and microbes from the bioreactor, and dewatering, concentrating or drying the solids to yield the biomass; and
blending the biomass with an additive.
11 . A food or feed additive comprising:
a consortium including Cupriavidus necator , a species from the genus Rhodobacter , a species from the genus Rhodopseudomonas , and a species from the genus Bacillus.
12 . The food or feed additive of claim 11 wherein the species from the genus Rhodobacter comprises Rhodobacter sphearoidies.
13 . The food or feed additive of claim 11 wherein the species from the genus Rhodopseudomonas comprises Rhodopseudomonas palustris.
14 . The food or feed additive of claim 13 wherein the species from the genus Rhodobacter comprises Rhodobacter sphearoidies.
15 . The food or feed additive of claim 14 wherein the species from the genus Bacillus comprises Bacillus subtilis.
16 . The food or feed additive of claim 15 further comprising Rhodobacter capsulatus.
17 . The food or feed additive of claim 14 further comprising Rhodobacter capsulatus.
18 . The food or feed additive of claim 11 wherein the consortium is characterized by an enhanced attractiveness to fish.
19 . The food or feed additive of claim 11 wherein the consortium is characterized by an enhanced palatability to fish.
20 . The food or feed additive of claim 11 wherein the C. necator comprises over 85% of a dry weight of the consortium of the food or feed additive.