Last month the new European research project SUSINCHAIN kicked off. Theproject aims to contribute to novel protein provision for feed and food inEurope. SUSINCHAIN is a project funded with a grant from the European Union’sHorizon 2020 program.
SUSINCHAIN wants to overcome the barriers for increasing the economicviability of the insect value chain and opening markets by combining forces ina comprehensive multi-actor consortium.
Insects and insect-derived products have entered the European market sincefirst being acknowledged as a valuable protein source for feed and foodproduction at around 2010. However, scaling up the insect value chain inEurope is progressing at a relatively slow pace. Insect value chainstakeholders in and beyond the SUSINCHAIN consortium, have identified thenecessary strategies and related activities to overcome the current hurdlesfor scaling up the value chain, Hence, the project aims to test, pilot anddemonstrate recently developed technologies, products and processes, torealise a shift up to Technology Readiness Level 6 or higher for insect chainsbased on Black Soldier Fly, (BSF), Housefly, (HF), Mealworm (MW) and Crickets(HC) for feed and/or food production.
20% insect protein in 2025
These actions provide the necessary knowledge and data for actors in theinsect value chain to decrease the cost price of insect products, processinsects more efficiently and market insect protein applications in animal feedand regular human diets that are safe and sustainable. This will pave the wayfor further upscaling and commercialisation of the European insect sector,resulting in a replacement of animal protein by insect protein of 10% inanimal feed and of 20% in human diets, and a thousand fold increase in bothproduction volumes and jobs in 2025.
€ 8.5 million budget
The duration of the project will be 48 months and the project will beconducted in collaboration with 18 industrially and 17 academic partners witha total budget of over 8.5 million euro. Dr Teun Veldkamp as coordinator andProf Ine van der Fels-Klerx as deputy coordinator, both of WageningenUniversity & Research (WUR), will take on the management of the project.
Source: Ma rieke Ploegmakers Editor: All About Feed
Previous Dog owners have better health after a heart attack, study says
Next For Sale ON-LINE Pet Business