Production of Value-Added Products from Meat Processing Cellulosic Waste

Abstract

Large quantities of cellulosic waste are being produced and dumped in landfills every yearby the meat processing industry worldwide. This waste can be categorized as organic waste andcan be easily utilized for the production of beneficial byproducts for the food industry. This researchfocuses on the bioconversion of spent casing solid waste from frankfurter/sausage meat processingindustries, which is composed of more than 95% cellulosic material. Two practical processes wereevaluated to reuse the spent casing waste into valued-added products, first the production of glucoseby enzymatic hydrolysis using commercial cellulase enzymes and second, the fermentation of spentcasing waste for the production of cellulase enzymes with the fungi Trichoderma reseei RUT-C30.Results among the six commercial cellulase enzymes tested showed a significant variation in theinitial rate of glucose produced, with the most efficient showing more than 80% degradation after 24hrs at 50 C and enzyme loading of 20 IFPU/g casing. Results from the cellulase production in a 2-Lbench scale bubble-column reactor have shown a cellulase production of 1.3 IFPU/ml after 7 days.A comparison of the produced cellulase enzyme with commercial cellulase enzyme demonstratedidentical enzymatic characteristics and hydrolytic power with spent casing waste and pure cellulosicpaper.