PRODUCTION OF PROTEIN CONCENTRATE FROM WHEY

Graphical Abstract

Abstract

The fundamental objective of this project is to carry out the feasibility study for the
production of protein concentrate from whey, which will reduce and/or eliminate this
residue. The production of protein concentrate from whey is a process in which the
proteins present in the whey are extracted and concentrated. Whey is a liquid by-product
obtained during cheese production. The production process includes whey collection,
initial filtration, concentration, purification and drying. The resulting protein
concentrate is used as an ingredient in foods and dietary supplements. This process is
carried out in several dairy processing plants in Ecuador.

Keywords: Feasibility, Whey, Protein Concentrate, Production, Point of Balance.

supplements. The protein concentrate

production process typically involves
1. Introduction
separating the whey from the curd,
The production of protein concentrate followed by removal of the solids and
from whey involves the extraction and concentration of the proteins using
concentration of proteins from whey, physical processes such as ultrafiltration
which is a by-product of cheese or nanofiltration. The resulting
manufacturing. Whey contains high- concentrate can be dried into a powder
quality proteins, such as lactoglobulin and stored for later use. Whey protein
and lactalbumin, which can be isolated concentrate is an economical and
and concentrated for use as an sustainable source of protein that is used
ingredient in foods and dietary
in a wide variety of applications in the the basis theory on which observations,
food and nutrition industry. descriptions and subsequent
explanations of realities of the
2. Methodology
environment to be analyzed are based
In this type of research we will use
3. Development
exploratory and descriptive research, in
order to determine the commercial The production of protein concentrate
viability of this new product. The from whey is carried out in Ecuador in
investigation is exploratory because it several dairy processing plants.
allows us to draw quick conclusions and Companies such as Nestlé, La Carolina
is usually carried out as an advance to a and Vitaquimica are some of those that
more complete investigation. It will are dedicated to the production of whey
allow knowing the tastes and protein concentrate in the country.
preferences of consumers. It will be Whey protein concentration is a
done through direct surveys of common process in the Ecuadorian
consumers of the new product. You will dairy industry and is used as an
work directly with the consumer. ingredient in food and dietary
supplements. In addition, whey is an
A descriptive investigation is used since
important by-product of the cheese
it describes manufacturing processes of
industry in Ecuador, and its use for the
the product, and it will allow us to
production of protein concentrate is a
determine the viability of the product,
sustainable and profitable way of
as well as the client profile is the set of
adding value to this by-product.
sociodemographic characteristics such
as age, level of education, geographical The APRODEMAG Association,
area, etc. located in the Mulalo parish, Cotopaxi
Province, is made up of 23 members,
The method used corresponds to an
with Mrs. Dora Zenaida Robayo
inductive method since it allows us to
Chango as legal representative. The
start from the observation of particular
Association also has a store that is
phenomena or situations that frame the
located in the center of Mulalo, where
research problem, and conclude
you can buy not only dairy products but
propositions and in turn premises that
also basic necessities. This store is
explain similar phenomena when
undergoing renovations to turn it into a
analyzed, so the results obtained can be
20-large distribution center. scale with
commercial premises of different The product will be made known
products and services that the through advertising on social networks,
Association offers. The company specialized fairs, muscle-building
produces cheese and yogurt which are contests and in any place where you can
distributed to different provinces of find a specific segment of the market
Ecuador such as Pichincha-Quito, that we seek to serve.
Cotopaxi; Latacunga, Salcedo and
Once the market study was carried out,
Tungurahua-Ambato.
it was known that the existing demand
The target market is adults who perform is 10,464 people, based on the survey
some type of physical activity and carried out with 274 people from the
federated athletes from the Province of Canton of Latacunga, in addition, the
Cotopaxi, gender is also despised since participation of the competition in the
men and women regularly go to gyms Cotopaxi market is 3% of the total of
or perform other activities that require these that They are equivalent to
physical effort. Based on the results of approximately 4,289 units sold, so there
the survey we can determine the size of is an unsatisfied demand from around
the market, as previously observed 6,128 potential consumers, in addition
approximately 46,496 between the ages to the fact that marketing will be
of 20 and 34, it is known from the 2015 focused on promoting the product,
Living Conditions Survey that only offering it at better prices than the
36.3% of the population practice some competition, with visits by sellers to
sport decreasing the population to renowned gyms and the participation
16,878 people. active in natural and sports fairs.

For commercialization, a price will be 3.1. Technical study

used that should oscillate between 60 –
To properly locate the production plant
80 dollars. The company has chosen to
for the production of the new product, it
follow a competition-oriented pricing
will be located taking into account
strategy that focuses on differentiation
factors such as:
from competitors with lower prices, to
stimulate the segment that is more  Raw material

sensitive to prices according to Talaya  Transport

(1997).  Availability of physical space
 Labor availability
The Aprodemag association and its number of transportation vehicles and
Campolat dairy line are located in the does not have the facilities or the
Province of Cotopaxi, so their macro availability of labor or raw material, so
location will be this, since their the location of Macaló Grande will be
operations, equipment, personnel, and used
raw materials are larger and more easily
The market share that is sought is 50%
accessible in that area. The company is
of the total unsatisfied demand, for the
located in Mulalo, all its operations are
year 2019 it is 3,094, this market value
in that area, so its meso location will be
is taken since this product can be
this as well. For the micro location there
extended to other provinces, the daily
are two sites in the Mulalo Center, the
consumption in grams is of 231,623 in
plant could be built in the facilities of
kilos 231.62 or 509.57 pounds, as
the Distributor that is in full
explained in section 12.1.3, since an
construction and the second option is
average person consumes 75.6 grams of
Macaló Grande where the facilities for
protein per day. The whey production of
the production of milk derivatives are
the company will not be able to supply
located.
the requirements to satisfy this market
Factors Mulalo Big demand, for which several agreements
Center Macalo were made to obtain raw material from
Raw material 3 4 other micro-enterprises, around 5,200
Transportation 4 3 liters of whey are required, and it is
Availability of 3 4 known that for each liter of whey Sweet
physical space whey can be recovered approximately
Labor 3 4 3.25 grams of protein concentrate.
availability
It is known that from approximately 700
Total 13 fifteen
liters of whey, 5 pounds of protein
concentrate are obtained and
As can be seen, Macaló Grande has approximately 3.25 grams of powdered
greater access to raw materials, has protein concentrate can be recovered
greater availability of labor and greater from each liter of whey, so that 16,900
availability of physical space for the grams could be obtained daily. are
construction of facilities, while in equivalent to 16.9 kilos and 37.18
downtown Mulalo there is a greater pounds
The optimal size is the company or its
installed capacity with respect to its
availability of raw material is 2,715
units of protein concentrate in a 5-
pound presentation in 365 days of
production.
3.2. Financing
The Aprodemag association will make
an investment of 200,000 dollars to
begin the construction and elaboration
of the new product, financed by its 23
partners, which is located in its
communal fund. The amount of raw
material available in the company is
between 1,200 and 1,800 liters of sweet
and acid whey, but being part of the
Aprodemag Association, through efforts
that are in process and with small
cheese producers, an average up to
10,000 liters of whey.
3.3. Production process
The production process of protein
concentrate from whey generally
involves the following steps:
Whey collection: Whey is a liquid by-
product obtained during cheese
production, after milk coagulation.
Initial Filtering: The collected whey
undergoes a filtering process to remove
impurities and unwanted solids.
Concentration: The filtered whey
undergoes a concentration process to
increase the amount of protein in the
whey. The concentration process can be
achieved by different techniques, such
as ultrafiltration, nanofiltration and
reverse osmosis.
Purification: Once the serum has been
concentrated, it undergoes purification
processes to remove other unwanted
compounds.
Dried: Whey protein concentrate is
dried to a powder that can be stored and
later used as an ingredient in foods and
dietary supplements.
It should be noted that the production of
protein concentrate from whey may
vary according to the specific processes
used by each company or processing
plant.
3.4. Requirements for
production
3.4.1. Direct requirements
Direct requirements are all those that
are directly involved in the production
of the protein concentrate.
 whey
 Cocoa (Processed with alkali)
 Natural and artificial flavors
 Aminagen
 acesulfame potassium
  ultrafiltration equipment
 plastic jars
 Operator
3.4.2. Indirect requirements
Indirect requirements are those that are
not directly involved in the product
manufacturing process.
 Basic services (Electricity,
water)
 Transport
 Inputs (packaging and labels)
 Quality analysis
3.5. Production cost
The Campolat company will not
produce at the maximum of its installed
capacity until it wins the market, it will
increase every year at a rate of 1%
during the first 5 years until it obtains
popularity and clientele.
Thus, it is obtained that the cost of raw
material for the elaboration of a
container of 76 portions of 30 grams
each, has a cost of 58.38 dollars, this
also represents a daily production cost
of $ 467.02 and a cost of $170,461.66
for the production of 2,920 bottles.
The necessary inputs for the preparation
of the concentrate are the identification
labels for the bottles and the same
bottles with a capacity of 5 pounds.
Which have a cost of: 39 cents per
bottle and 10 cents per label. Total = 49
cents inputs.
3.6. Project impacts
3.6.1. Social
The implementation of the protein
concentrate production area in the
APRODEMAG company in its
Campolat dairy line presents a social
benefit since personnel will be required
to carry out the activities, 3 people will
be required to be in charge of analyzing,
packaging and storing the product and
raw material.
3.6.2. Economic
The elaboration of the project in the
same way will have an economic
benefit, since income will be obtained
from a product that was discarded, this
benefit is around $335,800.00 in sales
of the first year of this product. The
benefit is not only for the company, the
small cheese makers who sell the whey
that they discard also benefit from it, the
annual cost of buying whey is around
73,000 dollars.
3.6.3. Environmental
The project also contributes to reducing
the contamination of soils, crop fields
and waters where the whey is discarded,
since the 1,800 liters produced in
Campolat and the approximately 4,000
liters of whey purchased daily from the The authors declare that they have no
companies Lácteos mi Preferido, known competing financial interests or
Lácteos San Enrique y Lácteos San personal relationships that could have
Jorge are used to make protein appeared to influence the work reported
concentrate. in this paper.

4. Conclusions 7. Bibliography

The installed capacity of the production

Baca Urbina, G. (2010). Evaluación de
plant is 2,920 units per year, which can
Proyectos (6 ed. Vol. 1). México:
be obtained with approximately 5,200 McGrawHill/INTERAMERICANA
liters of whey per day, the production EDITORES, S.A. DE C.V. BCE, B. C. d.
cost per unit is $69.82 and the cost of E. (2019). Indicadores Económicos:
sale is $115, which includes the profit Inflación. from
for the company and the income tax. https://sintesis.bce.fin.ec/BOE/OpenDocum
ent
If the whey-based protein concentrate
1602171408/OpenDocument/opendoc/open
elaboration project were launched, an Document.faces?logonSuccessful=tru
economic benefit of 15.93% would be e&shareId=1
obtained after 5 years, this value is
greater than the TMAR value, which BCE, B. C. d. E. (2019). Indicadores
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88 dollars, due to the evidence that can https://sintesis.bce.fin.ec/BOE/OpenDocum

be appreciated, the decision is reached ent

1602171408/OpenDocument/opendoc/open
that the project is feasible and economic
Document.faces?logonSuccessful=tr
return will be obtained by carrying out
ue&shareId=0
these activities.

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