Global Sustainable Transformation: “Sustainable Transformation and Enhanced Quality of Life”
Dr. Mahmoud Masri is the CEO and Co-Founder of Global Sustainable Transformation (GST), a pioneering biotechnology company addressing critical global sustainability challenges. Under his leadership, GST is revolutionizing oil production with environmentally friendly, yeast-derived alternatives to traditional vegetable oils, significantly reducing CO₂ emissions and land use. With a strong commitment to innovation, biocircular economy, and global impact, Dr. Masri is driving GST’s mission to protect nature and shape a sustainable future for generations to come. DeliveryRank features an exclusive interview.
Your platform transforms biogenic, industrial, and municipal side streams into high-value products. Can you explain the core processes involved and how they contribute to creating a closed-loop carbon cycle?
Over the past 12 years, I’ve been dedicated to developing a concept central to our work: the circular bioeconomy. At its core, this involves transforming biomass—rich in fermentable sugars—into valuable products through sustainable and efficient processes. During my PhD and subsequent roles as a postdoc and group leader at the Technical University of Munich, my focus has been on how to harness these side streams—whether agricultural, industrial, or otherwise—and convert them into usable outputs in a circular system.
We created a platform called FHCR, which stands for Ferment, Hydrolyze, Centrifuge, and Recycle. It begins with the use of any biomass side stream. Through a pre-treatment process, we break down the biomass into fermentable sugars and nutrients, which we then feed to a specially selected yeast. This yeast is robust—it tolerates a wide variety of toxic compounds often found in waste streams, such as those from the paper industry—and efficiently converts the sugars into high-value lipids. Wherein our unique fermentation system enable high yield.
Unlike traditional fermentation processes that produce ethanol and release it into the medium, oily yeast accumulates triglycerides within lipid bodies inside the cell—similar to how lipids are stored in human cells. The key difference in our process is that instead of using harsh mechanical stress combined with solvent-based extraction (which are often energy-intensive and not scalable), we apply a gentle enzymatic hydrolysis to break down the yeast cell wall. This releases the oil into the medium without damaging the integrity of the remaining components.
Following this, we use centrifugation to separate and collect the oil. Everything else—cell walls, nutrients, water—is recycled into the next fermentation cycle. Because this residual material is rich in sugars, vitamins, and nutrients, it significantly reduces the need for new inputs and enhances carbon efficiency. In fact, much of the carbon introduced at the start is retained and reused, making the entire process highly sustainable.
Our innovation rests on three pillars:
The way we ferment using specialized, resilient yeast;
The way we extract oil using scalable enzymatic methods; and
The way we recycle all non-oil components to minimize waste and maximize resource use.
Together, these innovations form a closed-loop system that exemplifies the promise and potential of the circular bioeconomy.
Yeast-derived oils are presented as sustainable alternatives to traditional plant-based oils like palm oil and cocoa butter. What are the key environmental and economic benefits of these oils, and how do they perform compared to conventional counterparts?
Let’s now turn to the environmental aspects of what we’re working on, particularly in comparison to traditional palm oil production.
In countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, producing just one liter of palm oil requires approximately 1 to 3 square meters of land. When you're talking about millions of tonnes of oil, that becomes an enormous contributor to deforestation and biodiversity loss.
Now, I’m not claiming that our yeast oil can immediately replace all global palm oil production—that would be too optimistic. But we firmly believe that every liter counts. One liter of yeast-derived oil can potentially save up to three square meters of land that would otherwise be cleared for palm plantations. So as we scale up our platform, the cumulative environmental benefit becomes significant.
The second critical point concerns carbon emissions. Each kilogram of palm oil is typically associated with 3 to 5 kilograms of CO₂ emissions, depending on the study. With our yeast oil produced from sugar, we can reduce that footprint by up to 65%. And when we use biogenic side streams—such as food waste—we can even achieve net negative CO₂ emissions.
For instance, in Germany alone, around 1.8 million tonnes of old bread are discarded every year. This untapped biomass is responsible for approximately 2.4 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Imagine if we redirected that old bread to produce yeast oil—we wouldn’t just be reducing emissions; we’d be creating a valuable product from discarded resources. This is what a circular economy truly looks like—closing loops, reducing waste, and creating high-value outputs from low-value inputs.
Let me also touch on another major area: cocoa and cacao butter production. In Africa, there is growing pressure to expand cocoa plantations to meet rising global demand. Cultivation areas are only expanding by about 1% annually, yet the market demand for cocoa products is increasing by 6–7% each year. This mismatch is leading to severe land use pressures, driving deforestation and other environmental challenges.
What’s worse is that we are already seeing disruptions in the supply chain, particularly since COVID-19. Even when companies are willing to pay 6–7 times more than before for cacao butter, supply simply isn't guaranteed. We've experienced this ourselves—we’ve placed orders and been told, "We’ll deliver when it's available." This volatility highlights not only the environmental limitations but also the economic instability of relying solely on traditional supply chains for such commodities.
That brings us to our solution. Our yeast-derived cocoa butter alternative is a 100% equivalent replacement. Chemically and physically, it is identical to cacao butter—not just similar. It performs the same in applications, has been tested with partners across multiple use cases, and delivers no compromise in quality or functionality.
In summary, our platform doesn’t just provide a sustainable alternative to palm oil and cacao butter—it redefines how we think about resource use. By tapping into underutilized side streams and producing clean, high-quality oils with reduced or even negative carbon impact, we are paving the way for a more resilient, circular, and environmentally conscious bioeconomy.
With a focus on low CAPEX and OPEX, low emissions, and environmental friendliness, how do these priorities shape your approach to innovation and the scalability of your solutions globally?
Sustainability, on its own, is not truly sustainable without a solid financial or business foundation. That’s why we always ask, when producing our cocoa butter alternative—or what we call yeast butter—how does the cost compare to traditional cacao butter?
If the total cost of production—including capital expenditures (CAPEX) and operating expenses (OPEX)—isn’t at least in the same range as conventional cacao butter, then the solution becomes financially unsustainable in the long run, no matter how environmentally beneficial it may be.
We are constantly working to reduce both CAPEX and OPEX through ongoing process optimization and innovation. It’s important to recognize that CAPEX is not only a financial metric—it also contributes to the carbon footprint. The CO₂ emissions associated with capital investments are increasingly being factored into companies’ carbon budgets, making this an environmental consideration as well.
In our view, true long-term sustainability must address three interlocking dimensions:
Environmental sustainability – reducing deforestation, emissions, and ecological impact.
Economic sustainability – ensuring the solution is cost-competitive and viable at scale.
Social sustainability – contributing to supply chain resilience, price stability, and community well-being.
If any one of these dimensions is missing, the solution will not succeed over time.
So when we develop innovations like yeast-derived cocoa butter, we always ask ourselves:
Does it perform as well as the traditional product? ✅
Does it offer customers a stable, scalable supply in a volatile market? ✅
Is it price-competitive within the acceptable range for cacao butter? ✅
And does it significantly lower the environmental footprint? ✅
When all of these conditions are met, we know we’re on the right track—and that the process is not only valid, but truly scalable and sustainable.
Rapid market entry and international expansion are stated goals. What specific strategies are being used to achieve this, and how do you adapt your technologies for different regions or industries?
We currently have our first three GST oil products ready for market: a cocoa butter equivalent, a palm oil alternative, and a low-linoleic sunflower oil substitute. Of these, the cocoa butter equivalent is the most advanced and is already market-ready. Our current focus is on the European Union, where we are involved in an EU-funded project applying this product in chocolate and confectionery applications. These are also major use areas for cocoa butter in the cosmetics industry.
While there are already several plant-based cocoa butter alternatives available, our product stands out because it is chemically identical to natural cocoa butter. It offers the same performance, mouthfeel, and melting behavior, but with a significantly better sustainability profile. After the EU launch, our next target market is the United States, followed by expansion into Asia. Although regulatory requirements differ between regions, the core formulation and usage of cocoa butter—particularly in chocolate—remain largely the same. Most manufacturers prioritize melting temperature and texture, which are consistent benchmarks across markets. This means the core product specification remains stable; the primary adaptations relate to compliance with local regulations and labeling standards.
Another area where regional differences are significant is in the biomass available for fermentation. Biogenic side streams differ based on geography and industry. For example, the types of agricultural byproducts available in the U.S. are not the same as those in Germany, Malaysia, or even between countries within the EU. This means we need to evaluate local feedstock availability to determine the most sustainable and cost-effective production process in each location. The product itself can also be slightly customized depending on local preferences—for instance, some customers prefer a higher melting point, while others favor a lower range. We have the flexibility to accommodate these variations.
Capital expenditure (CAPEX) and operational expenditure (OPEX) also need to be optimized regionally. Infrastructure costs, energy prices, feedstock accessibility, and regulatory hurdles all play a role in determining how we scale in each market. Our production strategy is designed to be adaptive, allowing us to maintain the same high product quality while aligning with the economic and environmental conditions of each region.
In essence, the product remains consistent, but the approach to bringing it to market is tailored to each region. By maintaining flexibility in feedstock utilization and production design while ensuring regulatory alignment and cost efficiency, we aim to create a truly scalable, sustainable solution that meets the needs of the chocolate, cosmetics, and broader plant-oil markets.
Your team is made up of experts from various disciplines. How does this interdisciplinary collaboration enhance your research, development, and implementation of sustainable technologies?
That interdisciplinary interaction is truly key to our innovation process. Our team is composed of chemists, biologists, biotechnologists, engineers, and also people from non-technical backgrounds such as business. What may surprise some is how deeply technical our discussions can become—and how valuable every perspective is, regardless of background. Often, someone without a technical role will raise a question that at first seems unrelated, but ends up being quite valid and thought-provoking. These contributions prompt us to revisit assumptions and broaden our thinking.
In these meetings, everyone contributes from their own angle. It’s common for us to gather around a whiteboard, drawing out ideas, opening laptops to reference papers, and diving into a lively exchange. Each person—technical or not—adds value. The richness of having different minds approach the same issue helps us avoid blind spots and dig deeper into root cause analysis when challenges arise. For instance, if something isn't working in the lab or in production, we look at the issue from multiple angles to understand what went wrong and why. Sometimes, the most unexpected insights come from someone outside the core domain, simply because they ask a fresh question.
This process helps foster a culture of learning. Even though I’ve been working with this process for over ten years, I still learn something new from colleagues who are just joining the team. Some of them may not have long-term experience in fermentation or other specific areas, yet they still contribute valuable insights I hadn’t considered. I genuinely appreciate that dynamic.
We’ve also structured our workflow to support this approach. We've divided the work into six key departments, and each week we hold a focused meeting on one department’s area. During these sessions, we go in-depth on specific topics, analyzing issues, sharing updates, and brainstorming solutions. These meetings not only help with planning and root cause analysis but also generate new ideas and hypotheses that we take back to the lab to test.
In the end, it’s this open, inclusive, and interdisciplinary collaboration that keeps us innovative and agile. It ensures that no one person holds all the answers—and that’s what makes our team strong.
If you would like to find out more about GST, please visit https://gstransform.de/