
John Axelsson
PhD Project: Valorization of whole/gutted small herring and sprat into protein-enriched ingredients.
My research focuses on the valorization of whole/gutted small herring and sprat into protein-enriched ingredients. The project aims to develop novel processing techniques to utilize these underused small pelagic fish species.
Despite being recognized as climate-smart and energy-dense animal protein sources, a significant portion of herring and sprat caught by Swedish fishing vessels is currently exported for fish meal production or mink feed, representing a loss of valuable food resources for human consumption.
My work involves finding suitable processing techniques to recover muscle proteins while maintaining functionality, nutritional value, sensory quality, and storage stability, particularly concerning lipid oxidation.
For fish from the Bothnian Sea, it is also crucial to remove contaminants such as dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs.
The goal is to create new applications for these valuable food sources, which can economically benefit the Swedish fishing and seafood industries, reduce imported seafood, lower environmental impacts from transportation, and increase the consumption of locally produced healthy seafood.
Supervisors
Main Supervisor
- Professor Ingrid Undeland (Chalmers)
Assistant Supervisors
- Dr. Mehdi Abdollahi (Chalmers)
- Assoc. Professor Friederike Ziegler (RISE)
- Martin Kuhlin, (CEO of Sweden Pelagic)
Location
I am affiliated with the Department of Biology and Biological Engineering, Division of Food and Nutrition Science at Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg.
Contact
Feel free to reach out to me at:
Department of Biology and Biological Engineering
Division of Food and Nutrition Science
Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg
About Me
My name is John, and I am from Göteborg, Sweden.
I have a scientific background in Biotechnology, having earned my MSc degree from Chalmers University of Technology in 2018, where my MSc thesis focused on protein extraction from seaweed.
Before returning to academia, I worked for three years at a company that sells laboratory equipment, chemicals, and consumables.
I am thrilled to be back in the challenging world of science and to be part of a project that has the potential to bring more local, traditional, and nutritious food to our plates.