Found in everything from chips to toothpaste, our addiction to palm oil is destroying rainforests. But an alternative may be on the horizon—oil made from microbes
However, an alternative to palm oil may be on the horizon, one that’s just as multifaceted but not as fraught: oil made from microbes.Scientists began looking into alternative sources for obtaining edible oil out of necessity, says Philipp Arbter, a biotechnologist at the Technical University of Hamburg in Germany.
But interest in microbial oils—those made from yeast, as well as other microorganisms like algae—has seen a revival in recent years as an eco-friendly substitute for palm oil, one that appears more viable than other vegetable oils. , one of a handful of emerging startups that are growing and tweaking microbes to produce a synthetic version of palm oil.As an oil, palm is hard to beat. For a start, it’s an extremely efficient crop—the reason why it’s so cheap compared with other oils. An acre of oil palms—the trees that grow the fruit palm oil is made from—can produce more than, at least six times more than other edible oils.
Those attributes make finding a suitable substitute somewhat of a holy grail, though microbial oil, with a lipid profile similar to palm oil, might just be up to the task.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Homicide Investigation Launched After Man Found Dead on Side of Road in VistaNearby witnesses said they heard what sounded like fireworks prior to deputies arriving at the scene, according to authorities.
Read more »
ADOC investigating after inmate found dead in cell at Limestone Correctional FacilityAn inmate was found dead in his cell at the Limestone Correctional Facility on Wednesday.
Read more »
Body found on Tucson's east side ruled a homicideOn Wednesday, the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner informed detectives that the autopsy results ruled that the victim's death was a homicide.
Read more »