ABSTRACT

Enzymes have been used since time immemorial in cheese manufacturing and indirectly via yeasts and bacteria in food manufacturing. Isolated enzymes were ‰rst used in the year 1914, their protein nature was proven in 1926 and their large-scale microbial production started in the 1960s. The industrial enzyme business is steadily growing due to improved production technologies, engineered enzyme properties, and new application ‰elds. The global market for industrial enzymes is expected to increase to over $2.7 billion by 2012 [1]. In recent years, enzymes have found applications in the food, agrochemical, and pharmaceutical industries and now increasingly in organic chemical synthesis.