San José, Costa Rica-based insect protein firm ProNuvo has received a USD 2 million (EUR 1.8 million) investment from the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
The investment gives ProNuvo enough money to complete construction of an insect feed plant in Guápiles, Costa Rica, with a capacity of 4,000 metric tons per year.
IFC, a member of the World Bank, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. IFC said it made the investment to “support to accelerate the global expansion of the nascent insect protein industry, a rapidly emerging field driven by a market opportunity of USD 11 billion [EUR 10.3 billion] for aquaculture feed and the pet food market.”
"IFC is delighted to support ProNuvo's growth and commitment to innovation, sustainability and competitiveness," IFC Central America Regional Manager Sanaa Abouzaid said in a press release. "As global industry catalysts, we seek to foster circularity and demonstrate the industrial-scale commercial viability of the project."
Founded in 2018, ProNuvo farms black soldier fly larvae, using organic waste material to feed the larvae which are converted into high-quality fats and proteins. The company then sells the feed residue, known as frass, as organic fertilizer.
"We transform waste into high-quality products to generate a positive environmental and social impact," ProNuvo Co-Founder and Chair Miguel Carmona said. "We are proud to operate in a country that is committed to the environment and to have the support of collaborators like IFC that are perfectly aligned with our mission of creating a more sustainable food chain for future generations."
Separately, Singapore-based Protenga, which raised USD 2 million (EUR 1.8 million) for an expansion in 2022, following on a USD 1.6 million (EUR 1.4 million) round of seed funding in 2020, expects to triple production and sales in 2024.
"We are bringing three new farms online this year, of which two will contribute to increased product output already within the year,” Protenga Founder and CEO Leo Wein told SeafoodSource.
Wein, who was a featured speaker at the 2024 Insects to Feed the World conference from June 19 to 22, 2024 in Singapore – hosted by the Asian Food and Feed Insect Association – said feed made with black soldier fly larvae is nearing price parity with established feed ingredients.
“Certainly not with soybean meal, and I don't think that's the goal for most, but for more high-quality ingredients – both protein and fat ingredients, but also functional value propositions – we do see cost competitiveness and value add of insect ingredients becoming a commercial reality rapidly,” he said. “We expect that to continue in 2025 as we collectively increase the range of applications and customers we can serve.”
Protenga operates on a farming partnership model, working with biomass owners to upcycle byproducts and waste products "that are largely under the partner's control and, depending on the partner, often with limited alternative uses," Wein said.
“That enables us to have quite attractive cost structures and an attractive financial proposition for our farming partners and Protenga,” he said.
A “major tailwind for alternative proteins” is blowing through the aquafeed sector, according to Wein.
“Insect proteins is the one that is technologically ready and tested and understood the most by the industry,” he said.
Wein said his product is price competitive with Latin American fishmeal but still not competitive with local Asian-produced fishmeal supply. Protenga supplies customers in Japan, Korea, as well as countries in Southeast Asia and Chile.
