Natural Products Extraction of the Future—Sustainable Manufacturing Solutions for Societal Needs

Abstract

The production of plant-based extracts is significantly influenced by traditional techniques and the natural variability of feedstock. For that reason, the discussion of innovative approaches to improve the manufacturing of established products and the development of new products within the regulatory framework is essential to adapt to shifting quality standards. This perspective of members of the DECHEMA/ProcessNet working group on plant-based extracts outlines extraction business models and the regulatory framework regarding the extraction of traditional herbal medicines as complex extracts. Consequently, modern approaches to innovative process design methods like QbD (Quality by Design) and quality control in the form of PAT (Process Analytical Technology) are necessary. Further, the benefit of standardized laboratory equipment combined with physico-chemical predictive process modelling and innovative modular, flexible batch or continuous manufacturing technologies which are fully automated by advanced process control methods are described. A significant reduction of the cost of goods, i.e., by a factor of 4–10, and decreased investments of about 1–5 mil. € show the potential for new products which are in line with market requirements.

Process Engineering Accelerating an Economic Industrialization Towards a Bio-Based World

“…The purification of isolated structures from plants will be of increasing importance in the future. Innovative technologies create optimal COGs [35], especially, process intensification such as hybrid separation technologies or integration of reaction and separation, for example phyto-SMB (simulated moving bed) chromatography processes may be a solution.…”

“…The utilization of primary and secondary metabolites as value products is also integrated in this concept, following the basic idea of not breaking down the synthetic performance of the plants first by disintegration into small building blocks and then recombining them by fermentation, but to first extract the value compounds, e.g., amino acids, peptides, and proteins as primary metabolites, and also extract secondary metabolites, e.g., polyphenols or flavonoids [33,34]. This must not affect further processing steps, and therefore the process engineer typically falls back to natural solvents, ideally water [17,35,36,37,38,39,40].…”

Special Issue on “Process Design, Integration, and Intensification”

“…In the perspective paper by Uhlenbrock et al [8], business models and the regulatory framework regarding the extraction of traditional herbal medicines as complex extracts are outlined. Accordingly, modern approaches to innovative process design methods are necessary.…”

At-Line Monitoring of the Extraction Process of Rosmarini Folium via Wet Chemical Assays, UHPLC Analysis, and Newly Developed Near-Infrared Spectroscopic Analysis Methods

“…Plants have been the main source of traditional medicine systems over millennia and are still of great importance in healthcare today [1,2]. The demand for pharmaceuticals based on natural sources has even increased in recent times [3,4]. In Europe, herbal substances, preparations, and combinations are assessed and regulated by the Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC), which is part of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph.…”

“…Furthermore, resource and cost efficiency can be increased by extraction optimization. Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy represent attractive analysis techniques for the research demand regarding the at-line, on-line, or in-line analysis of phytoextraction processes [3,8,9,10,11,12,13,14]. In contrast to common off-line reference analyses, NIR spectroscopic process monitoring as process analytical technology (PAT) has convincing advantages since its operation is non-destructive, contact-free, pollution-free, does not require any additional solvents, saves energy, and is highly cost-effective.…”