“Kerry had a great passion for the development of a biofutures sector and worked hard to see it realised for the betterment of the local industry. The Leaders Group takes in key decision-makers from across the region’s sugar value chain, local and state government, and from regional economic development. Its purpose is to steer and support the development of a biocommodities sector for the region. The Leaders Group is a flow-on from the State Government’s designation of the Mackay region as appropriate for development as a biocommodities hub in the 2016 Queensland Biofutures 10-Year Roadmap and Action Plan. In the roadmap, there is particular emphasis on Mackay as a hub for development of a Future Foods sector. Earlier this year, the Queensland Government called for comment on a proposed 1,019 ha State Development Area around Racecourse Mill at the edge of Mackay city and the nearby Rosella locale.
Kevin Borg MCL Chairman and Dylan Wedel SRA District Manager at LSQ Bioeconomy forum 2022
Future Foods include precision fermented plant-based proteins—in this case milk or egg alternatives that use raw sugar as the feedstock. It is a next-generation fermentation process defined by CSIRO as “a technique in which microbes are genetically reprogrammed to produce specific, customised molecules that can serve as new food ingredients.” A solution for a rapidly growing world population (reaching 9.8 billion people by 2050
according to the United Nations), where traditional protein sources are expected to be unable to meet global demand. The race is on to scale up production of protein from renewable, low carbon feedstocks—like sugarcane—to complement traditional and other emerging protein sources. The sector is expected to be a $700B market by 2040. Find out more by googling CSIRO Future Protein Mission. CONTINUED NEXT PAGE ‣
