ABSTRACT
The term ‘Single Cell Protein’ (SCP) is a euphemism for protein derived from microorganisms. It was coined by Professor Wilson of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to replace the less inviting ‘microbial’ or ‘bacterial’ protein or ‘petroprotein’ (for cells grown specifically on petroleum). The term has since become widely accepted. In the 1950s and 1960s concern grew about the ‘food gap’ between the industrialized and the less industrialized parts of the world, especially as there was rapid and continuing population growth in the latter. As a result of this concern, alternate and unconventional sources of food were sought. It was recognized that protein malnutrition is usually far more severe than that of other foods. The hope was that microorganisms would help meet this world protein deficiency. It was not thought that SCP would replace the need to increase proteins from plants such as oil beans or from animals such as fish. However, the limitations of conventional sources of proteins were recognized. These include: (a) possible crop failure due to unfavorable climatic conditions in the case of plants; (b) the need to allow a time lapse for the replenishment of stock in the case of fish; (c) the limited land available for farming in the case of plant production. On the other hand the production of SCP has a number of attractive features: (a) it was not subject to the vicissitudes of the weather and can be produced every minute of the year. (b) Microorganisms have a much more rapid growth than plants or animals. Thus a bullock
of its weight) of
protein a day, 10 hundred weight of yeasts would produce over 50 tons (or over 100 times) of their own weight of protein a day. Furthermore, (c) waste products can be turned into food in the production of SCP.
