Products and By-Products

Bioethanol

Bioethanol (not to be confused with biodiesel) is a fuel made from the alcoholic fermentation of carbohydrate-rich biomass. It has an alcohol content of at least 99 % by volume, making it practically water-free. In Europe, bioethanol is mainly manufactured from starch-rich cereal crops (wheat and corn) as well as from concentrated sugar beet juice, i.e. from plants grown locally.

Bioethanol can be used as a petrol substitute (after engine modifications have been made) or admixed to conventional petrol. Due to a legal substitution obligation, petrol in Austria already contains 5 % bioethanol.

Besides bioethanol, the AGRANA product range also includes top-quality alcohols (ethanol) for use in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries.

 

Animal Feed - Actiprot^®

ActiProt^® is a premium animal feed which is made mainly from wheat and corn as a by-product of the production of bioethanol. The best of the rest: The solid constituents left over from the production of ethanol, the so-called stillage, is dried and blended with the residual liquids which are thickened to the consistency of a syrup. This is then dried and pelleted to make animal feed. ActiProt^® is guaranteed GMO-free and is a high-end animal feed made from locally grown materials. The volumes manufactured in Pischelsdorf are sufficient to substitute up to a third of the soy bean animal feed which currently needs to be imported.

Wheat starch and wheat gluten

Also wheat starch and wheat gluten for the food and animal feed industry are produced in a wheat starch plant at the Pischelsdorf site. The close integration of the wheat starch plant and the existing bioethanol facility allows the cereals to be processed in a particularly efficient manner. The raw materials otherwise left over as by-products of the manufacture of wheat starch and gluten are used in the manufacture of bioethanol and to produce the premium-grade, GMO-free, protein-rich animal feed ActiProt.