Citribel trusted citric acid & citrate manufacturer since 1919
We have been producing citric acid and citrates for more than a century. Founded in 1919, Citribel has grown into a reliable citric acid producer, manufacturer of trisodium citrate, monosodium citrate. and mycelium for industries worldwide.
Building on our long history, we combine expertise with innovation to meet today’s needs in citric acid production, trisodium citrate and monosodium citrate solutions and mycelium manufacturing. With a balance of careful decision-making and curiosity, we continue to improve processes and develop sustainable solutions – while keeping our passion for progress alive.
Our history
In 1916, Mr Alphonse Cappuyns lived with his young wife near the pharmacy of his parents in law. Inspired by the lack of available citric acid for the pharmacy due to the first World War, Mr Cappuyns began researching the possibility of producing citric acid without lemons. His academic background as a fermentation specialist encouraged him to try and implement a German theory from the 19th century, which in essence claimed that citric acid could be produced by fermenting sugar. His first findings were negative: the theory was only theory and could not be turned into reality. But persevering as he was, he kept trying to find other organisms and experimented with a wide variety of process circumstances, which slowly led to first results.
Based on these first results, “Les Produits Organiques de Tirlemont” (P.O.T.) was founded in 1919. A small first fermentation chamber was filled and seeded with spores. Unfortunately, the citric acid yields were lower than expected, but many improvements were made in the next few years.
Despite these improvements, the new fermentation process could still not compete with the Italian lemon refining industry, and in 1925 P.O.T. was forced to halt its production activities. Mr Alphonse Cappuyns however continued to believe in the success of his approach and pursued his research. Barely three months later, using yet another micro-organism, he achieved a production yield that justified industrial operations and P.O.T. restarted production.
In 1929, Belgian know-how in fermentation was combined with Italian know-how in refining citric acid. A Belgian-Italian joint venture was established: “La Citrique Belge”. Today, the combination of both areas of expertise still forms the backbone of our high-quality products and applications.
Almost 20 years later, in 1947, the Italian partners left the company and Citrique Belge became 100% Belgian. The Belgians continued to improve the fermentation process. In 1948, the process expertise was sufficiently evolved to replace sugar as a raw material with less expensive sugar molasses. Hence, Citrique Belge became a circular company in its core, by upcycling a sidestream from another industry. During the following decades, fermentation yields, and production volumes slowly continued to increase.
Between 1977 and 2016, under the leadership and expertise of various subsequent owners, such as F. Hoffman La Roche, DSM and Adcuram, various capital increases and strong investments in production capacity were made. From an early stage, wastewater treatment was considered important and various investments were made to improve Citrique Belge’s wastewater cycle. Also, the high volumes and wide variety of valuable co-products became more and more important.
In 2016, Citrique Belge was acquired by a group of private Belgian investors and became an independent company again. These private investors all shared the vision of creating a long-term profitable company, with the balanced interests of all stakeholders in mind, equally focusing on citric acid and all the co-products.
With circularity and sustainability at its historical core, Citrique Belge develops into Citribel, an industrial producer and innovative expert in various bioprocesses, resulting in a wide variety of natural products for high-value applications.
Development of Mycanova, an innovational brand by Citribel that offers high-quality biomaterials made from upcycled mycelium, providing an innovative solution that balances sustainability, design and performance.
Start of MycoFence® a pure, organic immunity booster that’s rich in high-quality beta – (1,3/1,6)-glucans (>60%). Derived from mycelium, it’s an eco-friendly and sustainable resource. MycoFence® outperforms yeast beta-glucan due to the unique structure of beta-glucan in mycelium, resulting in superior functionality. Additionally, MycoFence® is a pure and free-flowing powder, easy to handle for optimal use in all feed formulations.
Start of MycoGlucan®, derived from the mycelium of Aspergillus niger, offers a powerful solution for boosting the immune system of pets. This product is rich in beta-glucans, which are known for their immune-enhancing properties, making it a valuable addition to functional feed.
Our mission & vision
Mission: Fermentation solutions for a better world.
Vision: To be the supplier of choice for sustainable high-tech biotechnology solutions.
CITRIC ACID
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“To develop and produce circular bio-products and their applications, based on surface fermentation.”
– that’s our purpose