Full Circle Founder and MD Felix Collins and HydroNeo Founder and CEO Fabian Reusch
Norwegian nutrient recapture company Full Circle Biotechnology recently partnered with Thailand-based aqua-tech startup HydroNeo. The collaboration will see Full Circle provide HydroNeo with its insect-based shrimp feed additive to enable it to generate new revenue streams and offer an alternative high protein, low carbon feed to the aqua industry. It will also enable both firms to innovate further and share industry insights and technical knowledge.
In this interview, Full Circle Founder and MD Felix Collins and HydroNeo Founder and CEO Fabian Reusch share more insights on this partnership.
Edited excerpts:
Can you provide an overview of the partnership between Full Circle Biotechnology and HydroNeo and the key objectives behind it?
Felix Collins: After about five years of R&D, Full Circle is starting commercialisation. Uptake with shrimp farmers has been good, but the industry can be opaque. It can be difficult to find farmers full-stop, but due to the culture of inheriting professions, it can be tough to find those willing to try something new.
Fabian Reusch has a network of farmers who have used his smart farm management system. In addition to the high performance of his IoT systems, he is looking to find a way to use his captivating application to open new revenue streams. Besides reach, his tech means rich data can be anonymised and used to improve our tech. It’s the perfect opportunity for both of us.
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Fabian Reusch: Shrimp farmers are facing many challenges now more than ever. The industry can only survive through partnerships and great products that increase profitability and sustainability while reducing the environmental footprint of farming.
Full Circle is known for its insect-based shrimp feed additive. How does this technology work, and how will it benefit aquaculture?
Felix Collins: Our novel ingredient improves shrimp weight gain by 17 per cent and improves first-call resolution (FCR) by 14 per cent in the lab due to a unique and patent-pending combination of solid-state fermentation and insect production that benefits gut health and nutritional efficiency. We recapture nutrients that have escaped the food system and reintroduce them in a safe, healthy and sustainable way.
FCR increases mean that diet can be reduced with the same yield results, resulting in more sustainable (feed is a major carbon cost and monetary cost) or more productive aquaculture.
HydroNeo specialises in shrimp farming technology. Could you elaborate on the IoT system they offer and how it contributes to improved shrimp farming practices and sustainability?
Fabian Reusch: HydroNeo’s smart farm management system ensures optimal 24×7 pond conditions through real-time water monitoring and automation. Providing comprehensive real-time data on water quality and environmental conditions improves shrimp farming practices and sustainability.
These data empower farmers to make informed decisions and optimise their operations, potentially resulting in savings of up to 50 per cent in energy costs through the smart automation of aeration based on real-time sensor data.
Additionally, we help farmers in reducing their operations’ environmental impact.
How does HydroNeo’s technology address high volatility in production?
Fabian Reusch: Shrimp farmers suffer from high volatility in production, which is the result of high mortality events that can happen either through water quality problems (e.g. algae crash situations where the mass-die off of plankton depletes almost all oxygen in a pond) or diseases spreading.
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HydroNeo’s technology effectively addresses the challenges related to rapid changes in water parameters on shrimp farms directly and even partial diseases indirectly. It continuously monitors critical water parameters, including Dissolved Oxygen (DO), temperature, pH levels, and more, ensuring that the farm’s water quality remains within the desired range to provide the animals with a safe environment for healthy growth. Strong and healthy animals are less prone to being infected by diseases. When the water conditions are not optimal, the system promptly alerts and recommends actions to farmers while automating equipment operation as needed. This technology has generally led to improved water quality management and, subsequently, enhanced shrimp farming practices.
Could you discuss the role of advanced automation features in HydroNeo’s smart farming solution and how they contribute to energy conservation and sustainability in shrimp farming?
Fabian Reusch: The advanced automation feature in HydroNeo’s smart farm management system plays a pivotal role in achieving energy saving and promoting sustainability in shrimp farming. Through our technology, shrimp farmers can save on average 30 per cent on energy costs, translating to roughly 20 tons of CO2 savings per pond per year by implementing smart automation for aeration. This automation is based on real-time sensor data, allowing precise and efficient management of aeration levels.
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Additionally, our system helps reduce labour-intensive schedules, providing 24×7 remote monitoring and control capabilities through mobile applications. This not only optimises resource allocation but also minimises the need for manual control, making shrimp farming more sustainable and less resource-intensive. These automation features are integral to our commitment to enhancing energy efficiency and sustainability in the aquaculture industry.
Full Circle Biotechnology’s insect-based feed additive is said to be an alternative to soymeal and fishmeal. What makes it a more sustainable choice, and how does it impact the aquaculture industry?
Felix Reusch: The carbon footprint of fishmeal can be astronomical — the ocean is the biggest carbon sink we have, and the ocean floor getting churned up by harvesting can release massive amounts of carbon. Soy footprints are lower than fishmeal, but both can involve biodiversity loss (in soy’s case, it’s via deforestation to use nutrient-rich soil). This impacts the aqua industry massively as consumers increasingly keep sustainability in mind.
The potential for EU climate taxes could have significant negative impacts on Asia’s aquaculture industry, potentially making seafood from Asia (often more affordable) much more expensive, reducing market demand and impacting nations’ entire economies. A lack of sustainable methods can put the economic growth of countries at risk, let alone the aquaculture industry.
How do small-scale farmers stand to benefit from the partnership between Full Circle and HydroNeo, especially in terms of their livelihoods and sustainability?
Felix Reusch: Two things besides volatile food prices keep farmers up at night: energy costs and feed costs. HydroNeo makes it easy for farmers to improve their sustainability and reduce energy costs overnight. Full Circle slots right into this model, doing the same with their feed. HydroNeo’s commendable application makes checking on energy use easy and accessible, but it also provides a streamlined approach to reducing feed costs with our system. By increasing yields, farmers can build up their revenue, while hydroneo reduces their costs. This opens up more cash to improve their livelihoods.
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