Question

Find out the role of microbes in the following:

Single cell protein (SCP)

Answer 1

Single cell protein refers to micro-organisms (e.g., bacteria, yeast, filamentous fungi, algae) that can be commercially cultivated in a fermenter, processed in various ways, dried, or utilised as food or animal feed. The term SCP, however, is misleading because it implies that the protein is derived from a single cell. The biomass produced by unicellular and multicellular organisms is classified as SCP. Some common bacteria utilised in the manufacture of SCP are listed below:

1. Bacteria (such as Methylophilus and Brevibacterium)
2. Cyanobacteria (such as Spirulina)
3. Yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida utilis, etc.)
4. Filamentous fungi (such as Fusarium graminearum)
5. Algae (including Chiarella)

There are various advantages of utilising SCP as food. Several of them are listed below:

• SCP contains a lot of high-quality protein but very little fat.
• It can be manufactured in laboratories all year round, and its production is not climate-dependent.
• The micro-organisms used in SCP manufacturing grow quickly and create significant amounts of SCP from just a tiny area of land.