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Alexander Mathys
Alexander Mathys at ETH Zurich
NationalityGerman
EducationDr.-Ing.
Alma materTechnische Universität Berlin
Scientific career
Fields
InstitutionsETH Zurich, Switzerland
German Institute of Food Technology
Nestlé Research Center

Alexander Mathys is a German scientist specializing in sustainable food systems and food technology. He is a Professor (Tenured in 2022) in Sustainable Food Processing at ETH Zurich in Switzerland. His work primarily focuses on finding sustainable and nutritional food and animal feed alternatives that would improve the sustainability performance.

Research career

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Mathys earned his Doctor of Engineering from Technische Universität Berlin in 2008. While there, he studied food technology and food preservation processes.[1] He wrote his thesis on the effects high pressure thermal sterilization on Geobacillus and Bacillus spores. His work on this topic earned him several awards, including the George F. Stewart IFT International Research Paper Competition Finalist in 2007[2] and the ICEF "Young Food Engineer" award in 2008.[3] He went on to work at the Nestlé Research Center in Lausanne, Switzerland from 2009 to 2012. After that, he developed the Bioeconomy department at the German Institute of Food Technology. He was designated a "Young Researcher" at the 60th Meeting of Nobel Laureates in 2010. That year, he was also given the "Einstein Scholarship Award" at the Falling Walls conference. For each of the following two years at the conference, Mathys was designated an A.T. Kearney Scholar, as well. In 2015, he became a tenure-track professor in the Sustainable Food Processing program at ETH Zurich.[1]

In general, much of Mathys' research deals with the study of global food systems and the environmentally unsustainable production of meat.[4] By 2050, meat production is expected to reach 470 million tons annually, double the amount produced in 2018.[5] Mathys' research has focused on the idea that a largely meat-based diet contributes to environmental degradation through the depletion of resources and an increase in the pollution of air, water, and soil. He also notes that a transition to a largely plant-based diet would improve those conditions while also optimizing health and nutrient indicators.[4]

Algae as a food source

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As the head of the Sustainable Food Processing Laboratory at ETH Zurich, Mathys has researched a variety of sustainable food alternatives, including algae. In 2016, he collaborated with the Bühler Group on a project to design algae-based biorefineries to cultivate and process algae as a human food source.[6] His research on the topic has suggested that microalgae can be integrated into food sources as a bulk protein while also providing other nutritional and health benefits including antioxidative, anticoagulant, immunomodulatory, and antihypertensive activities (among others).[7] The high protein content in certain algae may also make it an appropriate replacement for meat, which could reduce the impact that traditional meat sources place on the environment.[8]

Mathys' research has also pointed out that wide-scale cultivation and processing of microalgae is not yet competitive with current biorefinery concepts and technology. Mathys is currently researching nanosecond pulsed electric field treatment as a method of effectively producing algae for human consumption.[9][10] His work aims to optimize the effectiveness of algae cultivation and processing in the future.[11] Mathys' research is also looking at broader applications of microalgae cultivation, including as a food source and life support system for astronauts traveling long distances and/or creating colonies on other planets.[12]

Insects as food and animal feed

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In addition to algae, Mathys has also researched the efficacy of cultivating and processing insects for both human and animal consumption.[13][14][15] He has noted that insects provide a high-protein content and can be cultivated more efficiently than traditional meat sources. He has also stressed that more research is required to study the efficacy of insects for wide-scale human consumption.[16]

His research has also looked at insects as a more environmentally-sustainable source for animal feed. In a 2017 collaboration with the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology,[5] Mathys and other researchers from ETH Zurich studied the consumption of biowaste by black soldier fly larvae. The larvae were able to effectively utilize the waste (which included discarded household food and restaurant scraps), allowing for a more sustainable method of eliminating that waste. The larvae could then be used as animal feed with less harmful environmental effects than traditional feed sources, such as fish meal.[17][18]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Who is Who". WORLD Minds. February 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  2. ^ Mathys, Alexander (January 2008). Inactivation mechanisms of Geobacillus and Bacillus spores during high pressure thermal sterilization (Thesis). Technische Universität Berlin. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  3. ^ "Prof. Dr. Alexander Mathys, ETH Zurich, Switzerland". EFFoST Conference. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  4. ^ a b Chaudhary, Abhishek; Gustafson, David; Mathys, Alexander (27 February 2018). "Multi-indicator sustainability assessment of global food systems". Nature Communications. 9 (1): 848. Bibcode:2018NatCo...9..848C. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-03308-7. PMC 5829192. PMID 29487286.
  5. ^ a b Bernetta, Angela (5 November 2018). "Bewusster Konsum: Fleisch aus Pflanzen". St. Galler Tagblatt (in German). Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  6. ^ "The Future of Food". Quality Assurance Magazine. 24 October 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  7. ^ Caporgno, Martín P.; Mathys, Alexander (31 July 2018). "Trends in Microalgae Incorporation Into Innovative Food Products With Potential Health Benefits". Frontiers in Nutrition. 5 (58): 58. doi:10.3389/fnut.2018.00058. PMC 6080594. PMID 30109233.
  8. ^ Johannssen, Corinne (23 September 2019). "Insects, algae still far from being favorite foods in Europe". Phys.org. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  9. ^ Buchmann, Leandro; Frey, Wolfgang; Gusbeth, Christian; Ravaynia, Paolo S.; Mathys, Alexander (January 2019). "Effect of nanosecond pulsed electric field treatment on cell proliferation of microalgae". Bioresource Technology. 271: 402–408. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2018.09.124. hdl:20.500.11850/291659. PMID 30296747.
  10. ^ Haberkorn, Iris; Buchmann, Leandro; Hiestand, Michèle; Mathys, Alexander (December 2019). "Continuous nanosecond pulsed electric field treatments foster the upstream performance of Chlorella vulgaris-based biorefinery concepts". Bioresource Technology. 293: 122029. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2019.122029. hdl:20.500.11850/359375. PMID 31473378.
  11. ^ Würsten, Felix (12 April 2016). "Insects and algae in place of beef and chicken". ETH Zurich. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  12. ^ Reye, Barbara (12 March 2018). "Algen fürs All". Tages-Anzeiner (in German). Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  13. ^ Stallmach, Lena (28 April 2017). "Die grosse Verschwendung: In der Schweiz wandert ein Drittel der produzierten Lebensmittel in den Müll". Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  14. ^ Smetana, Sergiy; Schmitt, Eric; Mathys, Alexander (May 2019). "Sustainable use of Hermetia illucens insect biomass for feed and food: Attributional and consequential life cycle assessment". Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 144: 285–296. doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.01.042. hdl:20.500.11850/322651.
  15. ^ Adam, David (17 July 2019). "The super fly that could feed us, end waste and make plastic and fuel". NewScientist.
  16. ^ "Erste Insektenburger im Supermarkt erhältlich". SWR Fernhesen. 20 August 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  17. ^ Gold, Moritz; Tomberlin, Jeffrey K.; Diener, Stefan; Zurbrügg, Christian; Mathys, Alexander (December 2018). "Decomposition of biowaste macronutrients, microbes, and chemicals in black soldier fly larval treatment: A review". Waste Management. 82: 302–318. Bibcode:2018WaMan..82..302G. doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2018.10.022. hdl:20.500.11850/302327. PMID 30509593.
  18. ^ Gold, Moritz; Cassar, Cecille Marie; Zurbrugg, Christian; Kreuzer, Michael; Boulos, Samy; Diener, Stefan; Mathys, Alexander (2020). "Biowaste treatment with black soldier fly larvae: increasing performance through the formulation of biowastes based on protein and carbohydrates". Waste Management. 102: 102, 319–329. Bibcode:2020WaMan.102..319G. doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2019.10.036. hdl:20.500.11850/373170. PMID 31707321.
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