Material Insights · Understanding the Material World

Industrial enzymes

Proteins made by fermentation that speed up reactions in detergents, baking, ethanol and feed; an $8 billion market led by Novonesis.

Bio-based chemicals · Fermentation products · No. 112

  • Product family
  • Feedstock: Crops and biomass
  • not published (sold by activity, not tonnes)
  • HS 350790
Bio-based chemicals · Fermentation products · Foundation · Matter

Microbe-made proteins let your laundry come clean at 20-30 C and help turn maize starch into fuel.

Chart: Illustration: Industrial enzymes

Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Engineered bacteria and fungi are grown on sugar in fermentation tanks of 100-300 m3, then the enzymes are filtered off and formulated.

Three things to know
  1. The five biggest producers hold over half of the $8.4 billion enzyme market.
  2. Novonesis grew 7% organically in 2025 and earned a 37.1% adjusted EBITDA margin.
  3. Feed phytase must survive pelleting at 80-90 C, so stability matters as much as activity.
The journey
  1. 1 Strain engineeringBacillus, Aspergillus or Trichoderma tuned for yield
  2. 2 FermentationGrown on sugar in 100-300 m3 tanks
  3. 3 RecoveryCells filtered out, enzyme concentrated
  4. 4 FormulationStabilised as liquids or coated granules
  5. 5 UseFractions of a kilogram per tonne treated
Covered in The chemical industry: what it makes and how it is organisedChemicalsSoaps, detergents and agrochemicalsChemicalsPharmaceuticals and fermentation: from molecule to medicineChemicals
Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full