French biotech company Agronutris, a pioneer in insect rearing, has signed a strategic partnership with Bühler to guarantee its success in its scaleup.
Relying on an experienced team that has already run or built several factories, Agronutris has clearly chosen an integrated approach to run the project. This approach limits the number of players interacting and allows a clear set of responsibilities which is key in a process with a continuous flow. This approach also allows Agronutris team to focus on the strategic activities, insect biology and operational management of flow.
Bühler Insect Technology provides industrial-scale solutions for the transformation of organic residues into quality ingredients for animal and plant nutrition. The solutions cover the entire supply chain from feedstock handling to rearing, separation and extraction. The automated system with data-driven technology allows reliable control of operations and continuous improvement of overall equipment effectiveness. It also ensures product traceability throughout production.
Since the beginning of 2019, Agronutris and Bühler have been collaborating in order to define, together the first industrial factory of Agronutris. The two companies finalized the complete feasibility analysis of the plant that should be operational in the last quarter of 2021.
Andreas Aepli, managing director at Bühler Insect Technology, favors the collaborative approach taken by Agronutris. “Agronutris is a leading player in the insect industry that has acquired a strong knowledge about insect biology. We enjoy working hand in hand with a highly skilled team that knows how to conceive and operate large scale projects like this. We strongly believe they will become a successful player in the market, thanks to their experience and practical approach,” Aepli said.
“In my former life, I had the chance to run a business with up to 2,000 employees and 11 factories and visited many factories. At the end of the day, competitors have almost the same technology. The ultimate competitive advantage comes more from your R&D and from how the team runs and controls the process in the factory. The choice of Bühler allows us to have a partner with an effective experience that can engage its responsibility on the whole flow. I strongly believe that our approach that limits the number of involved players, that simplifies and clarifies the responsibilities and that allows us to focus on our strategic activities, is the best way to significantly mitigate the execution risk and to have a factory that operates well,” said Mehdi Berrada, CEO of Agronutris.
