Our Activity
Created in 2011, Agronutris is a French biotech company specialized in rearing and transforming insects into proteins for animal nutrition.
With a growing population – there will be more than 9.5 billion human beings by 2050 – protein requirements are set to increase considerably over the next few years. However, current consumption levels are putting ever-greater pressure on natural resources: the search for alternative, sustainable and local sources of protein has become a major challenge for the food sector.
Insects are clearly one of the new solutions to meet this challenge: black soldier fly larvae can be used to produce high quality protein in abundance, with little need for farmland and limited environmental impact.
Projected number of people on Earth by 2050.
(source FAO)
Increase in global demand for proteins over the next 35 years.
(source FAO)
Greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture.
(source FAO)
OUR EXPERTISE
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Agronutris has in-depth knowledge of all the biological and technical factors involved in rearing insects. It is the only company in the world to have bred up to nine insect species, including three systemically:
Gryllodes sigillatus
The cricket
Tenebrio molitor
The mealworm
Hermetia illucens
The black soldier fly
Building on this experience, Agronutris has chosen to focus on the black soldier fly, the most efficient species for industrial farming. The teams have expertise in all three phases of the process: reproduction, bioconversion and processing.
OUR INSECT: THE BLACK SOLDIER FLY
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In nature, the black soldier fly plays a crucial role in transforming decomposing matter from plants and animals into larvae. These larvae, rich in nutrients, are an essential food source for a variety of small animals such as rodents, fish and birds, marking the beginning of the food chain.
A powerful recycler
Agronutris ingeniously replicates the natural process of black soldier flies. By bioconverting co-products and bio-residues from the agro-industry, such as potato peelings, beet pulp and brewers’ grains, into high-quality sustainable ingredients, our company is industrializing this approach, making the black soldier fly the missing link that allows the agro-industry to become fully integrated into the circular economy.
Compared with conventional farming of other animal species, black soldier fly farming has a lower impact on climate change (it emits fewer greenhouse gases), consumes less water and requires less land use. It also has a positive impact on ocean conservation: by replacing fish meal with insect meal to feed farmed fish, the pressure on marine biodiversity is reduced.
Ultra-fast and high-performance growth
The life cycle of a black soldier fly is very short: it takes just two weeks to reach adulthood, compared with 12 weeks for the tenebrio. Their ability to convert organic matter into protein with high nutritional value – bioconversion – is also exceptional compared with other insect species: the black soldier fly larvae multiplies its weight by 10,000 in 15 days!
A harmless species
Originating from tropical countries, the black soldier fly is so adaptable that it is now present in the wild in Europe. It is completely harmless to humans and animals: it does not bite and does not transmit any disease.
This is the protein content of black soldier fly larvae after processing.
This is how long it takes for the black soldier fly larvae to reach its maximum mass.
This is the quantity of feed needed to obtain a mass gain of 1 kg of black soldier fly larvae. It takes 2.5 kg for poultry, 5 kg for pigs and 10 kg for cattle.
(FAO)
Our sites
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Our first plant in Rethel (Eastern France)
Our first plant opened in 2022 in Rethel, in the Ardennes. A strategic choice of location, at the crossroads of Europe, where there are many sources of raw materials that can be used to feed the larvae of our black soldier flies.
With a strong commitment to quality, our site is GMP+ certified. This international certification guarantees the food safety of animal feed at every stage in our production chain.
Our R&D centre in Saint-Orens-de-Gameville (Occitanie)
The company’s headquarters and pilot laboratory are at Saint-Orens-de-Gameville, near Toulouse. This site enables the research teams to carry out R&D activities while improving the technical conditions for continuous rearing.
Our partners
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