PROLEVAL

GUIDING FRANCE TOWARDS LOWERING ITS DEPENDENCE ON IMPORTED PLANT-BASED PROTEINS

Valorex, leading the PROLEVAL research project

For 30 years, Valorex has upheld that locally-grown beans, lupin and peas are an alternative to imported soybean and can reduce dependence on plant-based proteins from abroad. In 2015, the company undertook to promote and relaunch these crops through the PROLEVAL national research programme:PROtein-rich, oLEaginous, VALuing animals.

Carried out over 6 years, this 17 million-euro research programme has been approved by 3 competitiveness clusters (Valorial, Vitagora and IAR) and is appraised by the French Ministries of Agriculture and Industry. It is funded by the Investing for the Future programme, managed by the General Investment Commission(CGI) and operated by BPI France (Public Investment Bank) that funds the project to the tune of 8 million euros, 4 million in the form of grants and 4 million in the form of repayable advances.

Valorex funds 2 to 3 of the other 9 million euros, and the rest is funded by project partners such as Terrena and Dijon Céréales.

The National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) is the key academic partner in the project, and has deployed 6 research teams throughout the country.

The PROLEVAL programme underpins the Prodival® range

One of the major challenges for the PROLEVAL programme was to find a winning combination that would replace imported soybean meal with locally-grown protein-rich seeds.

And Valorex achieved this by combining two complementary levers of action that operate in synergy:

1. A crop lever: the creation controlled sectors, that are profitable for the farmer, that optimise the nutritional potential of the seeds, and adapt to the most favourable technological processes.
2. A technological lever:seed digestibility enhanced through the development of special cooking techniques. This scientific achievement required the set up of a new-generation pilot workshop, specialised in processing oilseeds and protein-rich plants.

After 4 years of research, the pilot workshop set up by Valorex came up with a process with strictly defined specifications for feed production: the Prodival® range.

Tested as a replacement for soybean meal in ruminant, pig and poultry farms, Prodival® has shown consistently excellent technical and economic results. Prodival® matches soybean in terms of technical results, with a highly competitive feed ration cost.

PROLEVAL defends local production not only for animal health, but also for human health

By promoting the development of national plant-based protein producers, the Proleval project is on the threshold of delivering of a new agricultural model that meets societal expectations. It concerns all the sectors affected by soybean imports and that bring consumer support: local production, GMO-free, Labels with designation of Origin (AOC), Organic and Bleu-Blanc-Cœur, for example.