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US-12624334-B2 - Food materials comprising filamentous fungal particles and membrane bioreactor design

US12624334B2US 12624334 B2US12624334 B2US 12624334B2US-12624334-B2

Abstract

Methods of production of edible filamentous fungal biomat formulations are provided as standalone protein sources and/or protein ingredients in foodstuffs as well as a one-time use or repeated use self-contained biomat reactor comprising a container with at least one compartment and placed within the compartment(s), a feedstock, a fungal inoculum, a gas-permeable membrane, and optionally a liquid nutrient medium.

Inventors

  • Richard Eugene Macur
  • Yuval Charles Avniel
  • Renata Usaite Black
  • Maximilian DeVane HAMILTON
  • Michael John Harney
  • Eleanore Brophy Eckstrom
  • Mark Andrew Kozubal

Assignees

  • THE FYNDER GROUP, INC.

Dates

Publication Date
20260512
Application Date
20230809

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A filamentous fungal based batter, comprising: a. a liquid dispersion of filamentous fungal particles, wherein the particles are primarily in the form of mycelia, fragments of mycelia, hyphae, and/or fragments of hyphae, and wherein the particles have been treated to eliminate cell viability; b. a non-fungal flour; and c. an ingredient selected from the group consisting of flavors, spices, flavor enhancers, fats, fat replacers, preservatives, sweeteners, color additives, nutrients, emulsifiers, stabilizers, thickeners, pH control agents, acidulants, leavening agents, anti-caking agents, humectants, yeast nutrients, dough strengtheners, dough conditioners, firming agents, enzyme preparations, gases, and combinations thereof, wherein: the liquid dispersion, the non-fungal flour, and the ingredient are combined into a batter; the filamentous fungal particles of the liquid dispersion make up at least about 8 wt. % of the batter; and the batter is vegan.
  2. 2 . The batter of claim 1 , wherein the filamentous fungus is selected from the group consisting of: a. a filamentous fungus belonging to a family selected from the group consisting of Mucoraceae, Ustilaginaceae, Hericiaceae, Polyporaceae, Grifolaceae, Lyophyllaceae, Strophariaceae, Lycoperdaceae, Agaricaceae, Pleurotaceae, Physalacriaceae, Ophiocordycipitaceae, Tuberaceae, Morchellaceae, Sparassidaceae, Nectriaceae, Bionectriaceae, and Cordycipitaceae; b. a filamentous fungus belonging to a species selected from the group consisting of Rhizopus oligosporus, Ustilago esculenta, Hericululm erinaceus, Polyporous squamosus, Grifola frondosa, Hypsizygus marmoreus, Hypsizygus ulmarius (elm oyster), Calocybe gambosa, Pholiota nameko, Calvatia gigantea, Agaricus bisporus, Stropharia rugosoannulata, Hypholoma lateritium, Pleurotus eryngii, Pleurotus ostreatus (pearl), Pleurotus ostreatus var. columbinus (Blue oyster), Tuber borchii, Morchella esculenta, Morchella conica, Morchella importuna, Sparassis crispa (cauliflower), Fusarium venenatum, Fusarium strain MK7 (ATCC Accession Deposit No. PTA-10698), Disciotis venosa, Clonostachys rosea, Cordyceps militaris, Trametes versicolor, Ganoderma lucidum, Flammulina velutipes, Lentinula edodes, Pleurotus djamor, Pleurotus ostreatus , and Leucoagaricus spp; c. a Fusarium species filamentous fungus; d. a Fusarium venenatum filamentous fungus; and e. Fusarium strain MK7 (ATCC Accession Deposit No. PTA-10698).
  3. 3 . The batter of claim 1 , wherein the non-fungal flour is selected from the group consisting of white flour, wheat flour, chickpea flour, teff flour, buckwheat flour, amaranth flour, sorghum flour, almond flour, and combinations thereof.
  4. 4 . The batter of claim 1 , wherein at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length.
  5. 5 . The batter of claim 4 , wherein at least one of the following is true: a. at least about 70% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length; b. at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 7 microns in length; or c. wherein at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 5 microns in length.
  6. 6 . The batter of claim 5 , wherein at least about 90% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length.
  7. 7 . The batter of claim 1 , wherein the solids content of the liquid dispersion is between about 4% and about 30%.
  8. 8 . A batter-based food product, comprising the batter of claim 1 .
  9. 9 . The batter-based food product of claim 8 , wherein the food product is selected from the group consisting of crepes, cheesecakes, cakes, and muffins.
  10. 10 . A filamentous fungal based batter, comprising: a. a liquid dispersion of filamentous fungal particles, wherein the particles are primarily in the form of mycelia, fragments of mycelia, hyphae, and/or fragments of hyphae, and wherein the particles have been treated to eliminate cell viability; b. a fungal flour; and c. an ingredient selected from the group consisting of flavors, spices, flavor enhancers, fats, fat replacers, preservatives, sweeteners, color additives, nutrients, emulsifiers, stabilizers, thickeners, pH control agents, acidulants, leavening agents, anti-caking agents, humectants, yeast nutrients, dough strengtheners, dough conditioners, firming agents, enzyme preparations, gases, and combinations thereof, wherein: the liquid dispersion, the fungal flour, and the ingredient are combined into a batter; the filamentous fungal particles of the liquid dispersion make up at least about 8 wt. % of the batter; and the batter is vegan.
  11. 11 . The batter of claim 10 , wherein the filamentous fungus is selected from the group consisting of: a. a filamentous fungus belonging to a family selected from the group consisting of Mucoraceae, Ustilaginaceae, Hericiaceae, Polyporaceae, Grifolaceae, Lyophyllaceae, Strophariaceae, Lycoperdaceae, Agaricaceae, Pleurotaceae, Physalacriaceae, Ophiocordycipitaceae, Tuberaceae, Morchellaceae, Sparassidaceae, Nectriaceae, Bionectriaceae, and Cordycipitaceae; b. a filamentous fungus belonging to a species selected from the group consisting of Rhizopus oligosporus, Ustilago esculenta, Hericululm erinaceus, Polyporous squamosus, Grifola frondosa, Hypsizygus marmoreus, Hypsizygus ulmarius (elm oyster), Calocybe gambosa, Pholiota nameko, Calvatia gigantea, Agaricus bisporus, Stropharia rugosoannulata, Hypholoma lateritium, Pleurotus eryngii, Pleurotus ostreatus (pearl), Pleurotus ostreatus var. columbinus (Blue oyster), Tuber borchii, Morchella esculenta, Morchella conica, Morchella importuna, Sparassis crispa (cauliflower), Fusarium venenatum, Fusarium strain MK7 (ATCC Accession Deposit No. PTA-10698), Disciotis venosa, Clonostachys rosea, Cordyceps militaris, Trametes versicolor, Ganoderma lucidum, Flammulina velutipes, Lentinula edodes, Pleurotus djamor, Pleurotus ostreatus , and Leucoagaricus spp.; c. a Fusarium species filamentous fungus; d. a Fusarium venenatum filamentous fungus; and e. Fusarium strain MK7 (ATCC Accession Deposit No. PTA-10698).
  12. 12 . The batter of claim 10 , wherein at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length.
  13. 13 . The batter of claim 12 , wherein at least one of the following is true: a. at least about 70% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length; b. at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 7 microns in length; and c. at least about 50% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 5 microns in length.
  14. 14 . The batter of claim 13 , wherein at least about 90% on a dry weight basis of the particles are less than about 10 microns in length.
  15. 15 . The batter of claim 10 , wherein the solids content of the liquid dispersion is between about 4% and about 30%.
  16. 16 . A batter-based food product, comprising the batter of claim 10 .
  17. 17 . The batter-based food product of claim 16 , wherein the food product is selected from the group consisting of crepes, cheesecakes, cakes, and muffins.
  18. 18 . A dry filamentous fungal based batter mix, comprising: a. a fungal flour, having a hydration power greater than a hydration power of wheat flour; and b. an ingredient selected from the group consisting of flavors, spices, flavor enhancers, fats, fat replacers, preservatives, sweeteners, color additives, nutrients, emulsifiers, stabilizers, thickeners, pH control agents, acidulants, leavening agents, anti-caking agents, humectants, yeast nutrients, dough strengtheners, dough conditioners, firming agents, enzyme preparations, gases, and combinations thereof; wherein: the batter mix is vegan; and the fungal flour makes up at least about 20 wt. % of the batter mix.
  19. 19 . The dry filamentous fungal based batter mix of claim 18 , further comprising a non-fungal flour.
  20. 20 . The dry filamentous fungal based batter mix of claim 19 , wherein the non-fungal flour is selected from the group consisting of white flour, wheat flour, chickpea flour, teff flour, buckwheat flour, amaranth flour, sorghum flour, almond flour, and combinations thereof.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/946,772, filed 16 Sep. 2022, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,723,392, which is continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/694,604, filed 14 Mar. 2022, now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,478,007, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/323,918, filed 18 May 2021 and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,272,726, which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/842,738, filed 7 Apr. 2020 and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,039,635, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/803,667, filed 27 Feb. 2020 and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,432,575, which claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 62/811,421, filed 27 Feb. 2019, the entireties of all of which are incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD This application relates to edible filamentous fungi and provides methods of preparing edible fungi for use in foodstuffs, liquid and solid formulations of edible fungi, as well as uses and methods associated therewith, foodstuffs containing edible filamentous fungi, and methods and uses thereof. BACKGROUND The United Nations listed the world population as 7.5 billion in August 2017 and predicts that figure to grow to 8 billion in 2023 and to be 10 billion in 2056. In a related report, the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that if the global population reaches 9.1 billion by 2050, world food production will need to rise by 70% and to double in the developing world. That increase in food production will need to occur despite rising energy costs, decreasing underground aquifer resources, loss of farmland to urban sprawl, and increasingly severe weather due to climate change (e.g. increased temperatures, increased drought, increased flooding, etc.). This is a particular challenge for countries such as Africa which, according to 2009 figures, already has inadequate protein intake and countries such as China, India, Pakistan, and Indonesia which are at risk of inadequate protein intake. In addition, the global demand is forecasted for 2040 to increase by 60% for meat and 50% for dairy. But not all protein sources are created equal. Animal-based foods (meat, eggs, dairy) provide “complete” proteins as they contain all of the essential amino acids; that is, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, phenylalanine, valine, threonine, histidine, tryptophan and lysine. Plant-based foods, while containing some essential amino acids, generally lack the complete set. For example, the protein found in starchy roots lacks the essential amino acid lysine, which must then be obtained from another food in the diet. Beans and legumes contain high levels of lysine, but they lack the essential amino acid methionine. Although it is possible to build a complete protein by pairing plant foods, ensuring a nutritionally balanced diet is much easier with complete proteins. One non-animal source of complete protein is obtained from edible filamentous fungi, such as Fusarium venenatum (formerly classified and Fusarium graminearum). However, to date protein production from these sources has required significant investment in energy resources and production equipment, such as capital-intensive bioreactors and centrifuges. There remains a need for growth, harvesting, and foodstuff production methods that require low energy, consume few natural resources, and are low cost. The current invention solves these problems. In addition, one area of reducing the logistics supply associated with responding to natural disasters, logistically isolated environments or military and/or space/extraterrestrial missions is the closure of life support loops, particularly waste streams, while providing mission critical products such as nutritional and appetizing foods, fuels, metabolite expression platforms, building materials and/or microbial factories. Oftentimes these types of environments have no or limited access to sterile facilities and/or require a sealed aseptic system to fully contain the waste stream and/or food, fuel and materials produced. For example, work by the European Space Agency (Expeditions 25-28, Growth and Survival of Colored Fungi in Space (CFS-A)) demonstrated that fungi can grow inside the space station and could decompose food and other organic materials in humid conditions; here containment of the fungal system is paramount to preventing inadvertent contamination of other supplies and surfaces. In addition to the need to decompose food and waste in the developing area of space travel, these needs are also present when dealing with natural disasters, in-theater military operations, wilderness operations, situations in the third world where sanitation and refrigeration are not reliable, confined spaces, logistically difficult arenas and in some agricultural/industrial operations. Having a self-contained aseptic syst