Peterborough, United Kingdom & Markham, Ontario, Canada, 8th September 2021
- Livalta, an AB Agri company, and Pond Technology Holdings have agreed an exclusive global partnership to grow algae-based animal feed from CO2 emissions
- The process effectively takes CO2 emissions out of the air to produce high value protein
- Livalta’s £1.6 million pilot plant to open at British Sugar’s Wissington site in Norfolk in 2022
A pioneering global partnership between responsible protein specialists Livalta, an AB Agri company, and technology leader Pond Technology will create the world’s first commercially viable production of algae-based animal feed ingredients from CO2 emissions.
Algae are gaining increasing attention as potentially game-changing animal feed ingredients. Until now, the technology to produce algae at the scale, quality and cost required to be an affordable ingredient for animal feed, has remained elusive. This exclusive partnership, which brings together Pond’s ground-breaking technology with Livalta’s expertise in new proteins for animal feeds, is set to change that.
The first product will be spirulina, combining 60% protein with Omega 6 and essential vitamins and minerals. Spirulina is renowned for its nutritional and functional value both in food and animal feed, as proven in numerous scientific studies.
Plans are in place for Pond to install Livalta’s first pilot plant at British Sugar’s Wissington site in Norfolk in 2022. This will be followed by a commercial-sized plant at the same site producing 20,000 tons of spirulina from CO2 emissions, with the prospect of additional collaborations in the future to develop further production sites.
AB Agri Chief Executive José Nobre said: “At AB Agri we are committed to pioneering new and bold technologies to provide safe, high-quality nutrition, whilst minimising our environmental footprint. That is why we created Livalta as a specialist division to address the global protein challenge.”
Managing Director of Livalta, Valerie Schuster, commented: “We believe that science and technology are key to turning the protein challenge into an opportunity. We are very excited about this partnership with Pond and the potential that lies in their technology to produce algae using CO2 emissions. We look forward to working together to make positive change happen.”
President & CEO at Pond Technology, Grant Smith, said: “This landmark commercial partnership with AB Agri gives Pond global access to the multi-billion-dollar animal feed market. The further validation of our model provides us significant momentum in expanding our sales funnel. Together with AB Agri and their new responsible proteins division, Livalta, we are working to develop algae as a cost-effective responsible feed ingredient, transforming climate change emissions into commercial animal feed ingredients. AB Agri and Pond joining forces to tackle producing affordable, high quality and responsible food is a major step forward and this commercialisation project will foster excellence in the way our industry produces food for people and animals. AB Agri is a perfect partner, having a strong history of bringing new animal feed ingredients to market and the vision to see responsible proteins as a key growth driver in the years to come.”
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About Livalta
Livalta, an AB Agri company, develops new, responsible proteins for feed and food using the latest science and technology. It seeks to contribute to making food systems more responsible, meeting the needs of people and the planet. It produces local, traceable proteins from e.g. co-products, algae or single cells and transforms them into high value feed and food ingredients.
About AB Agri
AB Agri is the agricultural division of Associated British Foods and manufactures animal feed, nutrition- and technology-based products and offers data services for the agri-food industry. It operates all along the food industry supply chain. It produces and supplies compound animal feed, feed enzymes, specialised feed ingredients and a range of value-added services to farmers, feed and food manufacturers, processors and retailers.
Associated British Foods is a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group with sales of £13.9bn and 133,000 employees in 53 countries. It has significant businesses in Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia. Its aim is to achieve strong, sustainable leadership positions in markets that offer potential for long-term profitable growth. It looks to achieve this through a combination of growth of existing businesses, acquisition of complementary new businesses and achievement of high levels of operating efficiency.
About Pond Technology
Located in Markham, Ontario, Pond Technology is a technology leader in controlled environment cultivation of micro-algae. In over ten years of R&D, Pond has developed a robust disruptive technology platform based on artificial intelligence, proprietary LED-lights and patented CO2-Management. The use of concentrated CO2 from industrial waste streams enables Pond to boost productivity of micro-algae well beyond the capacity of outdoor algae growers and allows industrial emitters to abate and ultimately recycle CO2.
Pond is currently selling micro-algae derived antioxidant astaxanthin under its Regenurex brand. As micro-algae are becoming increasingly important in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, nutraceuticals, human nutrition, aqua farming, bioplastics and biofuels, Pond has begun to license its technology to third parties for ongoing license fees and royalties. Pond recently added a Biotech division focused on the growth of unique strains of micro-algae to be used as a reproductive medium for the expression of human anti-bodies and proteins.
Media enquiries contact:
Lucy Pitcher, Director
lucy.pitcher@garnettkeeler.com
