Big River Prairie Gold, a 'Zein Protein' Joint Venture, Readies for Commercial Operation in Illinois

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A first-of-its-kind technology "zein protein" commercial-scale plant, located in Galva, Illinois, is preparing for operation later this month within the fence of the Big River Resources LLC (West Burlington, Iowa) fuel-ethanol plant, which is located in Henry County, Illinois.

Big River Prairie Gold LLC (Galva, Illinois) was formed to process raw corn into a value-added product, zein protein. Once zein is removed from the corn, the remaining properties of the corn make its way into the fuel-ethanol production process.

Prairie Gold developed a pilot-scale "Corn Oil and Protein Extraction" (COPE) process in a new 2,400-square-foot pilot plant, located Bloomington, Illinois, in 2007, with plans to commercialize the corn-product technology.

Construction of the estimated $12 million, 15,000-square-foot, commercial-scale plant started in May 2014, and the plant is expected to begin commercial operations later this month.

Zein proteins from corn can be used for biodegradable plastics, paper coatings, pharmaceutical products, food and cosmetics. Specifically, uses could include the glossy finish on magazines, coatings on pills, or even the glaze on candies, such as M&Ms. It also makes a brilliant chewing gum base--after being chewed for about 20 minutes, the plant-based product will disappear. It does not stick to the bottoms of tables, souls of shoes or strands of hair.

The 110 million-gallon-per-year fuel ethanol plant in Galva processes some 43 million bushels of locally grown corn annually, and produces a variety of co-products, including 342,000 tons of distillers dried grains, which are used as a feed additive; 3 million gallons per year of corn oil, which is used as biodiesel feedstock; and now a zein protein product under the brand name Amazein.

Big River Recourses operates additional fuel ethanol plants in West Burlington, as well as Dyersville, Iowa, and Boyceville, Wisconsin. The plants could be future candidates for the installation of additional zein production facilities.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.