Bühler, a plant equipment manufacturing specialist operating in the food and nutraceutical industries and NRGene Canada, a genomics company, has successfully launched its North American Insect Centre (NAIC).
The inauguration event was held at NRGene Canada's HQ in Saskatoon, and celebrated the novel facility's benefits to the production and optimisation of insect protein in North America.
NAIC as an industry hub
The NAIC will act as a research centre, where customers can also view demonstrations of the products on offer — including black soldier fly varieties catered to a range of by-product streams.
The facility will also support investors in evaluating the economic viability of larger plants for protein production before committing to full-scale investment.
Equipped with Bühler’s Trial Rearing Unit (TRU), the NAIC simulates industrial conditions to optimise the growth of black soldier fly larvae.
NRGene has significant experience and expertise in genomics and phenotyping, meaning it can develop high-performing black soldier fly strains for protein production.
The NAIC will also offer industry members customer trials, training sessions, workshops and seminars to advise and enhance their insect protein production lines and protocol.
"The NAIC is a testament to the power of combining genetic innovation with technological advancement," said CEO and Co-Founder of NRGene, Gil Ronen. "The promising results from our trials are just the beginning. This centre allows our customers to explore and optimise every aspect of insect protein production — promoting a more efficient and sustainable industry."
Head of Market Segment Insect Technology at Bühler, Andreas Baumann, added: "Combining NRGene’s genomic data tools and our advanced technologies will allow companies to leverage the deep industry and process knowledge of both companies to produce BSF larvae more efficiently and at lower costs. This will enable insect producers to bring bigger product volumes at consistent quality to the market fostering a broader adoption of this sustainable protein source in the animal feed sector.”