Scientists in Finland have made protein food "from air", and they say it could compete with soya in nutritional value. They claim greenhouse gas emissions from making the food would be close to zero if the electricity needed comes from solar or wind power. If their vision comes true, it could help control problems now caused by agriculture.

The scientists say hydrogen is separated from water by electrolysis. That hydrogen, carbon dioxide taken from the air and minerals are then fed to a type of bacterium found in soil to produce protein.

The product, named "Solein", tastes of nothing at all, which the scientists say is intended. The protein is not meant to be eaten on its own but added to other foods to raise their nutritional value. It could be used to make biscuits, pasta, noodles or bread, and even artificial meat or fish, and could also serve as livestock feed.

Pasi Vainikka, chief executive of the company producing Solein near Helsinki, who studied at Cranfield University in the UK, said the idea for such food production technology first emerged in the 1960s for use on spacecraft. He admits the work is somewhat behind schedule but hopes to finish by 2022. The company is raising funds for the project and has so far secured 5.5 million euros; it wants to start factory-scale production of Solein in 2025.

Source: BBC Bangla. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.