Headquartered in Spain, InsectBiotech isn’t the first insect ag-tech company seeking to convert agricultural residues into sustainable protein, oil, and fertiliser, but through its novel use of Andalusia’s olive waste as an abundant feedstock, as well as the unit economics of using black soldier fly larvae, it’s looking to the future with confidence.
The company was founded by Ignacio Gavilan, chief executive, who has 25 years’ experience in manufacturing, FMCG, and agriculture, along with Tobias Webb (CSO) and Ben Brown (COO). Following more than 500 trials, it has established two demonstration facilities – one at a university lab and one at an olive mill in Andújar, Spain – which have validated its approach.
Efforts are currently underway to secure further funding to scale operations and establish a large-scale production facility – a process that is proving fruitful, as Gavilan tells SustainabilityOnline.
“We managed to secure €1.5 million in seed money, which enabled us to undertake our research, and are in the process of raising €8.7 million to develop our first farm, €3 million of which we have already secured, from an American investor – one of the largest protein suppliers to retail and QSR [quick service restaurants] in the US,” he says. “There has been a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, but we’re getting there.”
Circularity at its heart
For Gavilan, the InsectBiotech story is one of circularity: using insects to convert agricultural and food waste into essential resources. These range from protein substitutes that reduce dependence on fish meal and soy, to fats for oils and biodiesel, and even larvae excrement repurposed as compost or as a soil biostimulant.
“We are turning waste into useful products that the world needs,” he says.
Observing that previous insect ag firms had used mealworms (tenebrio molitor), a species that necessitated the development of large facilities, InsectBiotech instead opted for black soldier fly larvae, enabling it to be more flexible in its approach.
“It’s more versatile,” says Gavilan. “It grows quicker [in ten days, compared to 45 for mealworms], and from an economic point of view, we think it’s a better solution. Also, we’re not going for massive scale; we prefer to have five smaller farms than one massive farm.”
The larvae are fed a substrate made from olive pomace, a byproduct of olive oil production, which in turn facilities year-round consistency.
“We are transforming it into a nutritional substrate for larvae,” says Gavilan. “It’s true waste – we’re not using anything that could be used elsewhere. That, to me, is the key: consistent substrate throughout the year, available at at a reasonable price, manageable at a smaller scale, and backed by the operational know-how that we have developed over the years.
“That said, we had to undertake a lot of R&D to get there – to make it palatable and nutritious for larvae. If you throw a bunch of larvae in a pool of olive pomace, they die. But if you pre-treat it…”
The right location
When assessing where to establish the business, Spain, as the largest producer of olive oil in the world, was an obvious choice, but as the company grows, it is also eyeing potential expansion in to other olive-producing countries, including Portugal, Italy, Greece, Morocco, and parts of the Americas.
“We’re in contact with the International Olive Oil Council – 32 countries in the world that produce olive oil,” says Gavilan. “Once we get a good command of our operations, we can start to look at other markets.”
To date, InsectBiotech has channelled its product into feed for the aquaculture industry, incorporating small percentages into existing feedstocks to test its efficacy. Having achieved positive results, the next step is to appeal to multinational companies focused on footprint reduction across their ingredient portfolio.
“We commissioned a study in Switzerland, with Quantis, and found that we’re down to 0.5 kilograms of CO2 equivalent per kilo of protein, which is quite an achievement in the alternative proteins market,” says Gavilan, who adds that he is in the process of forming an association in Spain to standardise the use of insect protein in animal feed.
“I think we need to normalise insect protein as an ingredient for feed,” he says. “But if we all shoot in different directions with different pricing, with different formulas, we’re going to be niche.”
Unlike its competitors, who may be targeting insect proteins for human consumption, InsectBiotech is focusing solely on animal feed, which Gavilan sees as a more practical, scalable approach.
“We’re not planning to go anywhere near human consumption,” he says. “That market will take a long time to develop. If I develop a KitKat or Mars bar that contains 5% insect meal – only 5% – the consumer will still be unsure about it. It still has that ‘yuck’ factor.”
Advisory committee
To maintain flexibility in a changing marketplace, InsectBiotech has an executive board, a science committee, and an advisory committee – the latter of which provides guidance on patents, methodologies, growth plans, cash allocation, and market acceptance, helping to de-risk operations.
“That’s very valuable information, and it improves the likelihood of our proposition being accepted,” says Gavilan. “When I meet with a feed producer, I’m not having a vague discussion about how much product they might take – I can point to specifics, such as a 5% inclusion rate in their feed.”
Looking ahead, therefore, Gavilan is confident that the company’s short-term target – to have its first sales module operational by 2026, followed by the development of a 10,000-square-metre farm in Jaen, Spain – is proceeding according to plan.
“From that point onwards, we would have the scale to establish a hub for rendering and packaging, before delivering directly to clients,” says Gavilan. “I’m confident that by 2031, we should have five farms in Spain, and then will be looking at Portugal, Italy or Chile.”
Or, to put it another way, these little insects have huge potential.
Learn more at www.insectbiotech.eu.
