DAINME-SME Project

DAINME-SME (Dairy Innovation for Mediterranean SMEs), is a new EU Project on green innovation in the dairy sector of Mediterranean countries. Funded by PRIMA - the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area, the Project started last 1st December 2019 and will be completed in November 2022. DAINME-SME aims at boosting circular economy within dairy SMEs in the Mediterranean area by introducing innovative technologies, developing new products, while pursuing the valorisation of milk & whey and enhancing the Mediterranean agri-food value chain, in line with its values and traditions. The Project has four specific objectives:

• Enable small dairies to dry their milk or whey, with the development of a new system to dry liquid foods, with much less investment and energy costs, than traditional systems need at this moment;
• Increase the sustainability of the spray-drying process (the most intensive energy user on food processing), by reducing the 20- 30 % the energy used (and it can be from renewable source). Afterwards, this emerging technology may then be applied at all kind of dairy powders, and other foods, all around the world;
• Develop new whey protein fractions, for infant food and sports drinks, based on goat and ewe’s cheese whey. Afterwards, the new technology may then be applied to cow’s milk/whey, at any place;
• New strategy to valorise minor whey volumes, or for dairies without technological competences, based on the elaboration of dairy products with the whey protein produced with the cheese-making.