Wood-to-feed producer in Innovation Award final
Alternative feed ingredient producer Arbiom has been named as one of three finalists in contention for the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s Innovation Award 2019.
Arbiom’s wood-to-feed technology mimics the natural process of decomposition of wood. Microorganisms – yeast, bacteria or even fungus – feed off the nutrients in the wood before being processed into a powder-form single-cell protein (SCP) source for animals.
The company, based in Durham, North Carolina, is in the middle of a demonstration programme for its product and is aligning investors and strategic partners with the goal of establishing a commercial-scale plant in 2022, potentially in Northern Europe or Scandinavia.
Consumer needs
“If we can make the supply bigger and more sustainable, we give the industry ability to adjust to industry and consumer needs,” said Arbiom vice-president animal nutrition Ricardo Ekmay.
“This will be a concerted effort to push agriculture and aquaculture into a direction that is sustainable and ensures the long-term success as a whole.”
Development of Arbiom’s SylPro yeast-based SCP product has been gathering momentum in recent months as studies have demonstrated its handling and nutritional performance. A recent set of trials conducted at Texas A&M University compared the product to conventional plant and animal protein sources and suggested that they perform well in the manufacturing process and showed positive nutritional benefits for hybrid striped bass (HSB).
Carnivorous species
“The main objective is to provide a high-quality protein for carnivorous fish species, like Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout. The [hybrid striped bass trial] was the first to wrap up,” Ekmay told the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s Advocate website.
While SylPro would be suitable for a range of agricultural livestock production, fish farming is the initial target, said Emily Glenn, Arbiom’s business development director.
“We’re looking at early adopters across different applications in feed and food sectors. Aquaculture has a much greater appetite for change, and it seems as though salmon producers are really leading the charge in terms of incorporating new technology.”
Glenn and representatives from the other two Global Aquaculture Innovation Award finalists will pitch at GAA’s upcoming GOAL conference in Chennai, India, where the audience will vote for the winner.
The other two finalists will be announced shortly.
