Geneus Biotech, a Dutch genomics firm developing DNA and blockchain techniques to prevent fraud and mislabeling in the food and pharmacological sectors, has set up a subsidiary firm in Paris, France.
The company, which operates MagicCaviar.com, has a patent pending for the world’s first cell-based caviar and oocytes, with the goal of commercializing caviar made without harming sturgeon.
Describing itself as a “genomics specialist company,” Geneus has also developed a traceability solution using DNA sampling and blockchain technology for sturgeon and caviar, as part of a three-year collaboration with the Berlin Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB). Consumers can scan a QR code to trace products covered by Geneus Biotech technology. The company counts among its clients major airlines like Emirates and Qatar Airlines, which serve caviar to their first-class clients.
“They want clearly traceable products. They are buying Beluga caviar at EUR 300 [USD 314] per kilo,” Kurz said.
Some in the European caviar industry have complained of the ineffective enforcement of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) regime on caviar labeling in the European market. CITES moves very slowly, said Kurz.
“We joined a working group but haven’t heard more since it was set up last July,” he said.
Using its genetic sequencing to trace caviar to sturgeon fish “down to the last egg,” Geneus has started with specimens swabbed from female caviar fish in Germany. Extending the technique to wild-caught fish – tracing every wild fish – is a long-term goal of Geneus, which has discovered wide-scale mislabeling of caviar sold in European retail outlets.
The company has also drawn interest from European producers of high-value species like langoustine, which has a limited catch season.
Its new subsidiary, GeneusAI, is developing a fast application for the identification of gender markers aiding the determination of the sex of newborn sturgeon species, which has significant relevance in conservation and responsible breeding, according to the company.
“We have the technology at hand to solve the traceability issue even at the level of any wild-caught fish species. The problem is we can’t attract investors,” Geneus Biotech CEO Henri Kurz told SeafoodSource.
One of the larger complications facing Geneus, according Kurz, is the lack of a legal framework for blockchain in the U.S., meaning that any blockchain-based solutions are difficult to sell to American clients.
Photo courtesy of nblx/Shutterstock
