ELEMENT LLC, a leading-edge biofuels producer in Colwich, Kan., announced that it has started production on a yeast-enriched, 50% protein animal feed called ANDVantage 50Y via a process that utilizes three proprietary technologies from ICM Inc.: patented Selective Milling Technology (SMT), patented Fiber Separation Technology Next Gen (FST Next Gen) and patent-pending Thin Stillage Solids Separation System (TS4).

ELEMENT, a joint venture between ICM and The Andersons Inc., became fully operational in 2019 but recently shifted product mix to begin producing ANDVantage 50Y. This feed product will be marketed by The Andersons. Additional product information can be found on andersonsgrain.com.

FST Next Gen and TS4 are critical differentiators in the production of the high-protein feed, the announcement from ICM said.

“FST Next Gen separates the fiber before fermentation, and TS4 concentrates protein and yeast after fermentation,” ICM president Chris Mitchell said. “In addition to producing a high-quality combination of corn and yeast proteins, these processes deliver higher efficiencies and operational cost savings throughout the production process.”

The product was developed in response to the increasing global demand for high-quality, high-protein feeds. “This feed ingredient produced at ELEMENT has a higher protein concentration and lower fiber content than traditional ethanol feed products,” Dr. Ryan Mass, ICM director of animal nutrition and feed development, said.

“The unique characteristics of ANDVantage 50Y allow it to be used in diets and species in which traditional ethanol feed products were not compatible,” added Dr. Scott Tilton, food animal nutritionist and technical advisor at The Andersons.

Established in 1995 and headquartered in Colwich, with a regional office in Brazil, ICM provides innovative technologies, solutions and services to sustain agriculture and to advance renewable energy, including ethanol and feed technologies designed to increase the global supply of protein.

Founded in Maumee, Ohio, in 1947, The Andersons is a diversified company rooted in agriculture that conducts business across North America in the grain, ethanol, plant nutrient and rail sectors. The Andersons owns five ethanol plants across the Midwest that are capable of producing a combined 550 million gal. of ethanol and 1.4 million tons of dry distillers grains annually.