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NASA and CNES are working on the diet of astronauts, which they wish to diversify. In France, the innovation of a young company from Toulouse is arousing a great deal of interest.
It is in the basement of a building in Toulouse (Haute-Garonne) that Nicolas Auriac and Quentin Jeandel, co-founders of the company Neopouss, have installed their urban culture. Production takes place protected from all pathogens, in an enclosed space of barely 50 m2. Peas, radishes, basil or nasturtiums, around twenty varieties of micro-greens are grown here, in a closed circuit and without any fertilizer. Its vegetables, herbs and flowers mature in a few weeks.
“Microgreens are superfoods. They contain a lot of nutrients. For example, coriander. We have a concentration 11 times higher than mature coriander in vitamin C”, explains Nicolas Auriac. These superfoods caught the attention of CNES. The National Center for Space Studies has selected Neopouss to reflect on food in space. “The idea is to transform [les micro-pousses] by a process of dehydration, to keep as many nutrients as possible in them”, explains Quentin Jeandel. Before feeding astronauts, Quentin and Nicolas deliver to restaurants in Toulouse. About twenty chefs use microgreens to enhance their cuisine.