In our profitability calculation, we account for the 80% total crop yield but I do not see us reflect anywhere that soy isolate requires 90% protein.
Given that the yield is 80% protein, which is 10% less than we need (90%-80%=10%), I calculated the overall boxes per acre, and then took a 10% haircut. That of course gives me an answer higher than the one you show here (where your haircut is 20%).
Can you explain where the 90% protein requirement is taken into account here? Thanks.
Hi there!
Happy to clarify as the author of the case.
In short, you’re right - the percentages provided right at the beginning of the prompt are no longer necessary later on. They are provided to slightly confuse the candidate by overwhelming them with info in the prompt. As you probably noticed, the prompt is a long one, with multiple questions and the challenge with answering effectively to the structuring question is in clarifying with the interviewer what to actually focus on.
Best,
Cristian
Hey there!
Of course! ? Here's the same explanation in a clearer format in English:
To produce 1 lb of soy isolate with 90% protein, you need to start with more than 1 lb of raw material that contains only 80% protein.
So the calculation is:
1 lb / 0.80 = 1.25 lbs of the 80% protein material
→ But you only want to keep the protein portion, so:
1.25 lbs × 0.90 = 1.125 lbs of the 80% protein input are needed to get 1 lb of 90% protein soy isolate.
This means you effectively lose about 20% of the original material in the purification process, since it takes more input to reach the higher protein purity.
Hope that clears things up! ✨
Best,
Alessa ?
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