Ittinsect - Feed for the Ocean

Ittinsect empowers fish farmers to enhance fish health and growth while reducing their impact. Our feed ingredients - obtained from the biotech extraction of valuable proteins from agricultural by-products and insects - mimic the protein composition of fishmeal. With Ittinsect, aquaculture no longer needs to catch fish from the ocean.

Technology:

Ittinsect identified the micro- and macronutrients contained in fishmeal and replicated them my extracting and combining similar ones from fully circular sources. Ittinsect has developed a patent-pending biotech process which involves the extraction of valuable proteins from agricultural by-products and insects. Inside the bioreactor we are able to improve the bioavailability of proteins by 8x compared to the raw material, as well as eliminating the anti-nutirtional factors linked to the presence of fibre and chitin.

Problem:

Sustainable, high-performance feed ingredients obtained from the biotechnological extraction of proteins from agricultural by-products and insects.

Impact:

In the past year of development we have succeeded in removing fishmeal from fish feeds by using insects and agricultural by-products. With the production of 3,500 tons of feed, our objective for 2024, we will avoid fishing 100 million sardines (or similar fish), while upcycling 3,500 tons of by-products. Overall, growth performance of farmed fish will increase by up to 15%, as demonstrated in our scientific papers.

UN SDGs:

The use of Ittinsect feed compared to traditional aquaculture feeds contributes towards SDG goals (every 10,000 tons of feed produced):

SDG 12 through the upcycle of 10,000 tons of agricultural by-products included directly and indirectly in the feeds;

SDG 13 through the reduction of emissions by  17,000 tons of CO2-Eq emissions in the feed production which affects the whole aquaculture value chain;

SDG 14 through the removal of all marine-sourced ingredients from aquaculture feeds Ittinsect reduces the need of catching 300 million sardines (or equivalent fish).

When at scale, Ittinsect has the potential to reduce demand of 300bn forage fishes (SGD14) while upcycling 1 million tons of agriculture by-products (SDG12) and reduce 20% Co2 emissions caused by the aquaculture value chain (SDG13).

Business model:

Target customers are the fish farmers. Among the many species of fish, Ittinsect specialises in feed for the most common species in Europe: trout, sea bream, sea bass, sturgeon and salmon.

Sales are structured with subscription plans of 6 months for juvenile and 12 months for adult fish.

Fish farmers' monthly purchase value for Ittinsect products ranges from 6,500€ to 56,000€, and cost of acquisition is approximately 300€/client.

Unique selling proposition

Ittinsect identified the micro- and macronutrients contained in fishmeal and replicated them by extracting and combining similar ones from fully circular sources. The cost-effective, patent-pending biotech extracts valuable proteins from agricultural by-products and insects. The bioreactor makes the proteins eight times more bioavailable and eliminates anti-nutritional factors like fiber and chitin, which are instead used as energy sources to fuel the bioreactor itself.

Technology

Ittinsect (our technology) is unique since it combines economic, health, and environmental advantages. The solution is economic because fish grow 15% faster, increasing output with the same unit price of fish; healthy because Ittinsect-bred fish have 7% less fat than average, making them a healthier consumer choice; and environmental as farmed fish have no more direct impact on ocean fishing, instead the technology promotes upcycling and emission reduction of up to 20% compared to the standard.

Go to Market

We have verified our technology at lab scale and in small commercial batches. The next step will be validating our continuous (24/7) bioreaction both technically and economically. In order to do this we are designing and preparing to build a pilot biotech plant with a theoretical capacity of 2500 tons annually.

(io ho scritto:To validate our technology we are investing in the construction of our first pilot plant that will be capable of producing 2,300 metric tons of sustainable proteins annually.)

Customers

Fish farmers are the target customers. Among the many fish species, Ittinsect specialises in feed for the most common species in Europe: trout, sea bream, sea bass, sturgeon, and salmon.

Sales are structured with subscription plans of 6 months for juvenile and 12 months for adult fish.

Fish farmers' monthly purchase value for Ittinsect products ranges from 6,500€ to 56,000€, and the acquisition cost is approximately 300€/client.

Ittinsect has identified the micro-nutritional profile of fishmeal and is replicating it by extracting and combining high-value proteins from low-value raw material.