US company Burcon NutraScience involved in the research and development of plant protein extraction and purification technology said this week that it has filed a composition patent to protect Supertein, the company's second novel canola protein isolate.
According to Burcon, their low molecular-weight canola protein exhibits both distinct and valuable functional and nutritional profiles and it complements Puratein, the company's initial protein isolate from canola.
Burcon added in a statement that its main focus has been on proving and optimising its core micelle technology. This patented technology enables the company to extract the protein from canola meal while maintaining the protein's functional and nutritional profiles. Early in its research efforts, Burcon discovered that its original process yielded only one of the dominant protein fractions found in canola meal.
Burcon claims to have now advanced its core technology to fractionate and recover this additional dominant protein, which the company intends to brand as Supertein.
"This technology allows us to produce two distinctly different canola proteins, each with unique functional and nutritional profiles," said Johann Tergesen, Burcon's president and chief operating officer. "Recovery of this protein increases overall yield significantly, making the combined Puratein- Supertein extraction process even more economically viable."
As with Puratein, Burcon is developing Supertein as a protein ingredient for food applications as well as for nutritional supplements and non-food uses.