Integrated Community-scale Biorefinery as an Approach to Valorize Tropical Residues in Zones Highly Affected by Violence

Abstract

An integrated community-scale biorefinery was proposed at a pilot scale to both valorize local agricultural residues and boost economic and social improvement in zones highly affected by violence, where many hectares of illicit crops have been replaced with tropical fruits and crops. The biorefinery uses Peach Palm Fruit residues as raw material and a two-steps process designed using biological considerations of the vegetable cell wall: (1) fractionation to obtain galacturonic acid and a sugar concentrate, and (2) conversion, in which organic acids were produced via fermentation with CO2 capture using Corynebacterium glutamicum. The system was validated using biomass supplied by 228 families, demonstrating its feasibility at the community scale in Colombia. Based on the starting raw material, 26.5% (w/w) of organic acids (i.e. lactic, acetic, galacturonic, and succinic) were produced and 3.4% (w/w) of CO2 was captured. The produced organic acids hold great significance as they can serve as natural products or synthesis intermediates with several applications in food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and plastics. By connecting sustainable production with local biomass availability, this biorefinery offers a model for circular bioeconomy strategies in rural regions, including those transitioning from illicit crops to legal agricultural development.