– This is a milestone in the life of the consortium, because a device has been created that is suitable for the production of sterile microalgae biomass – it was said on Wednesday afternoon in the Sándor Karácsony Hall of the Main Building of the University of Debrecen. Zolend Kft., the University of Debrecen and Albitech Kft. reported on the joint work of the past three years at the project closing event entitled “Development of a closed system photo-fermentation equipment suitable for the creation of highly efficient sterile microalgae biomass”.

Endre Zsigmond, managing director of Zolend Kft., opened the event, where he said that they had come to the end of a long work, that three years of research and development had come to an end. – The past period was not easy, and this is a very good moment to determine and evaluate our work. These results are not only realized in a product, but also in the skills and knowledge acquired. Since 2016, we have been consciously trying to make improvements with the company, which is important because we can use the experience gained later, said the executive.

Lajos Barcsa, deputy mayor of Debrecen, emphasized the economic indicators. – Zolend Kft. is also a small and medium-sized enterprise in Debrecen, which thinks in an innovative way and is constantly looking for development opportunities. In this case, he used the knowledge base of a business and the University of Debrecen in order to create a product that his partner can later sell on the market, and translate it into his own and other Debrecen farms. This is important because 39,000 people work in the local small and medium-sized business sector, so if we want these people to have a secure livelihood, it is important for the companies to develop, he emphasized. He added: the benefits of collaboration are also good for researchers, because they can develop something that can later be used in different sectors in real life.

Testing and production

After the deputy mayor, Lajos Ács-Szabó, an employee of the University of Debrecen, took the floor, who presented the work of Albitech Kft. through the realized developments and results in a presentation. Then Prof. Dr. Tamás Emri of the University of Debrecen reported on the tasks carried out from the institution’s project. In his presentation, he pointed out: three years ago, an important strategic goal was formulated to arouse or increase the interest of his university colleagues who are well versed in fermentation technology and applied microbiology in algae, thus bringing to the fore these microorganisms that are unfairly relegated to the background. One of their most important tasks was to create their own collection of algae strains. The professional manager of Zolend Kft., dr. In his report, Dávid Domonkos emphasized how the partner’s work was used and how this equipment was born. He said that the company’s task was to produce and test the prototype of the new innovative technical machine.

Dora Donga