Agri-waste to Feed & Fertilizer Industry

A registered Civil / Environmental professional engineer for over 25 years, I pursued my passion for aquaculture, in parallel. Working in aquaculture and starting an aquaculture company led me to PhD in aquaculture, at the Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries. Living in South East Asia, and having lived in developing countries, gives me a development perspective on aquaculture. I have completed my PhD experimentation, and established the innovative platform for production of feed from agri-waste through multi-stage application of biotechnology. The technology is capable of massively supporting sustainable food systems, in both developing, and developed nations. Its huge impact is generated with innovation that revolutionizes conversion of agri-waste for production of low cost feed of high protein, lipid, and amino acid content, and high value fertilizer by-product, supporting aquaculture and other livestock operations.

Millions of smallholders, and large estates, in the Global South suffer from low productivity, and revenue. Aquaculture is underdeveloped mainly due to cost of feed, while oil palm estates use expensive chemical herbicides, and fertilizers with undesirable health, and environmental impacts. Yet, estates harvest frond daily, year round, and this material can now enter the food chain. Successful process and feed trials demonstrated Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) rearing, a globally accepted replacement for fish meal in aquaculture diets, from oil palm frond. Millions of metric tonnes per year of fish meal replacement, at lower cost, will stimulate the aquaculture industry, while estates  improve tree and weed maintenance, and apply abundant fertilizer to achieve high productivity gains, justifying the freeze on expansion of the estates. Further biotechnology applications are identified to further increase oil palm sustainability, while the process can be transferred to other agri-wastes.

Millions of palm oil smallholders, and large estates, suffer due to low manpower budgets to maintain cost effectiveness. Productivity below 50% has been a false market share solution, also driving estate expansion. Natural fertilizing and weeding would permit removal of chemical herbicide, and fertilizers, with their undesirable health, economic, and environmental impacts. Bringing selected palm oil waste into the economy, brings manpower, and revenue to the estates, while by-product, high quality fertilizer guarantees productivity, and revenue gains. Insect meal is globally accepted as aquaculture feed, while oil palm estates harvest frond daily, year round, as agri-waste. The aquaculture industry is underdeveloped. mainly due to cost of unsustainable fish meal, and expansion can generate millions of jobs. Our biotechnology-processed frond, pre-consumer substrate appeals to insects and enhances meal nutritional, and health qualities. We have developed and prototyped the process inclusive of harvest, biotechnology, insect rearing, feed production, and aquaculture feed trials. Our platform is applicable to other agricultural wastes worldwide, inclusive within developing countries. While the adoption, and integration to aquaculture and livestock needs to be through large scale farm operations, the technology can be immediately available to smallholders.

Successful process and feed trials, completed at Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries, establish this ready-to-commercialize Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL) feed for livestock from agri-waste. Biotechnology developed makes the agri-waste into an insect ready feed, also permitting optimization of BSFL meal and lipid as replacement for fish meal in aquaculture, and other livestock diets. The extant hurdle, to date, is lack of safe, pre-consumer feed for insects. Regularly harvested, millions of metric tonnes per year of fish meal replacement, at lower cost, will be produced from oil palm frond alone. The feed will stimulate the aquaculture industry. At the estates, improved tree and weed maintenance, with application of the abundant, by-product, high quality fertilizer, will achieve high productivity gains. In oil palm, such increase in productivity justifies freezing expansion of oil palm estates. Oil production can be doubled on current estates. Further biotechnology applications improve feed, and fertilizer value, while the biotechnology can be applied in other agri-industries, supporting aquaculture, and livestock farming sustainably. Sustainably utilizing agri-waste, removing fish meal and soya meal from the food chain, increasing oil and fats production on existing land, are all outcomes with huge positive impact at scale.

Millions of palm oil smallholders, and large estates, in the Global South suffer from low productivity levels. Inserting the platform, can more than double employment on estates, and provide opportunities for entrepreneurial livestock and aquaculture farming, potentially integrated to estates. Low cost livestock and aquaculture feed will support National Food Security programs. Aquaculture needs to double by 2030. Low cost aquaculture feed is a global solution to global climate change, and sustainable ocean management.

Matching a solution to problematic agri-waste, with the production of sustainable feed, and fertilizer, can guarantee positive impact on agriculture in virtually every country, including the developing world. Selecting oil palm estates as the first agri-industry application, tackles global oils and fats sustainability. Oil palm isn't less sustainable than soya bean oil, as it produces far more per hectare. The industry operates at less than 50% capacity per unit area because of low prices. Changing this dynamic can remove the pressure for more estates and forest loss, transferring investment to higher productivity, existing estates.

This platform of biotechnology transformation, wherever non-manure agri-waste is unsustainably utilized, will produce similar positive impacts, while being customizable to crops and regions.

The platform delivers at scale against multiple global problems, including climate change, loss of biodiversity, pollution of land and sea, and inequitable distribution of food security. The principles of low carbon feed inputs lead to more sustainable insect production, and aquaculture. Agri-waste is underutilized, yet globally available at low cost. Every developing country has an agrarian base, with agri-waste unsustainably disposed. High quality livestock feed, and high value fertilizer, available with low investment, bring improved agricultural output, soil improvement, and livestock production for gender-neutral, entrepreneurial opportunities to smallholders, while changing large scale farming to a more sustainable, and balanced model.

Studying engineering in Canada, I had already worked on a salmon farm, and took up an aquaculture research hobby, discovering the potential of tropical aquaculture. Moving to Asia made my personal passion accessible, and I eventually founded an aquaculture company. The demands of a 25-year engineering career led me to pursue PhD in aquaculture late, finding a superlative team at my current Institute, to develop ideas for warm water, sustainable aquaculture.

I have abundant opportunities to improve aquaculture in Asia, but began by with an innovative approach to fresh water prawn farming, that can be integrated to aquaponics, and can also be reared in rice paddies. The problems of providing sustainable feed, at low cost, are abundantly clear, and I became interested in all types of alternative feeds. Insects became one of the leading prospects and I worked with black soldier fly and crickets, with the aquaculture nutrition team at the Institute. I realized that the main hurdle to insect meal production was the availability of pre-consumer substrate, and developed biotechnology for pre-processing of available pre-consumer agri-wastes, into feed that could support high quality insect rearing, and subsequent production of high quality feed, and fertilizer.

After 25 years in Environmental Engineering, I have learned never to give up, but also that the urgency of finding major solutions has grown exponentially. I also identify with achieving good, as opposed to financial gain. Furthermore, I have travelled the world, finding a place in many cultures and settling in Asia. Asia is the home to highly sustainable cultural practices, despite its problems. It is also the center of aquaculture production. I have the vision to deliver aquaculture solutions at scale that have the best potential to address multiple issues; climate change, pollution, biodiversity, and I understand the drivers to achieving the SDGs. As an environmental engineer, I have unique capabilities and knowledge, and at this stage want nothing more than to mentor young people to deliver their realization of solutions that are desperately needed. I have many projects, and concepts under development. I intend to take each success and leverage it to deliver more positive results, and build teams. It is compelling for me to now be inspired as an academic, as well as an engineer.

My successful engineering career of over 25 years has included working for world class consultancies, top tier clients (Governments and industrial giants), and smaller companies I’ve been involved in starting and operating, including an aquaculture service company. I’ve practiced environmental engineering and management globally, in North America, Central Asia, South Asia, South East Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, been a qualified project manager, and carried out business development for a wide range of projects. Having always been interested in chemistry and biology, my career has been very fulfilling. I’ve learned social, environmental, and sustainability delivery, including Environmental (and Social and Health) Impact Assessments, and sustainability assessment for major clients. I had the honor and privilege of working with Dr. Paul Hardisty, and participating in implementation of EcoNomics™ software, to assess the economic value of eco-system effects of industrial projects. I have pushed myself since my first aquaculture position to maintain the potential that I now realize in my PhD studies (almost complete now). This project is so important, in my view, that I can give it 100% of my attention. Academic papers and IP attribution are produced in the spirit of non-profit, and we keep development as a core focus of our work.

Working as an environmental engineer throughout Malaysia, I hoped to translate business understanding, network, and associates with like interests, into a sustainable aquaculture business. In the late 90’s aquaculture was in a primitive state, but Government and private sector gave indications of looking for investment opportunities. My company secured reputable technologies for sustainable aquaculture. We produced many papers, held workshops, conducted surveys of both production and market, and delivered many proposals for good financial returns. We built an equipment supply business that addressed challenges of power failure risk, cost of feed, pollution, and stock of species. Experts were brought from overseas to support proposals, and deliver workshops, including to Ministry of Fisheries staff. Business proved not to be sustainable, with a continued slow pace in the sector today (20 years on). My team were fresh graduates of Malaysia’s University level fisheries program, wherein I am now in PhD candidature. I was proud to have them on board, and they went on to long careers in fisheries, and aquaculture. I am starting this career again to address the same issues, including my academic perspective.

My consulting firm was one of the largest global consultancies, and developed the research base and software to provide sustainability assessment on industrial and infrastructure projects, where biodiversity and the environment were affected. As Head of environmental engineering, I worked with the expert who created this field of eco-systems valuation. First and foremost was the power of our firm focusing on education of our major clients, as to the impacts of their projects. But, the system we delivered permitted measured assessment of how best to reduce the impacts, and framed these solutions in financial terms within the project budget. This remains a ground-breaking field, especially in combating climate change and biodiversity loss. As Head, I was able to secure Train-the-trainer skill to become the champion of this technology within my country team of 250 engineering professionals. I was able to train engineers across the range of engineering disciplines, e.g., civil, mechanical, process, health and safety, economic, and environmental, to participate in projects for ports, industries, and major infrastructure. We delivered our assessments to clients and Ministry of Environment, achieving firsts in delivery of action for climate, environment, and biodiversity by major investors in major engineering projects.

I have developed this technology during PhD at Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries, University Malaysia Terengganu, which carries out non-profit community development and business partnerships to advance aquaculture and fisheries. I provide consultancy to the Institute in submissions of International bids for development. We are able to merge non-profit, academic research, with both funded development work, and commercial business entrepreneurship, and do so in the spirit of equality, and achievement of the SDGs.

Insect production replaces fish meal, soya bean meal, and other unsustainable sources of protein, and lipids, while generating high quality fertilizer. Our solution provides access to the substrate that is required to feed insects, processing agricultural waste, which is in vast supply in every country of the world. In our project, we initially adopted oil palm frond waste.

Oil palm produces more oil per unit area than soyabean, owning an equivalent global market share. Estates are largely smallholder operated, and employ millions. Oil palm is percieved to replace tropical forest, unlike soya. There is no reverse gear on oil palm estates. However, they operate at below 50% of proven productivity. The waste fronds are generated daily, year round from every estate. Removing a percentage to be processed to insect feed substrate, has numerous advantages.

Harvesting for bio-conversion of the waste, manpower enters the estate, increasing manual weeding. High quality fertilizer by-product replaces chemical. Estates increase productivity by 10 to 50%. Higher revenue decreases pressure to open new estates. Low cost aquaculture feed  is producable in millions of metric tonnes, between Malaysia and Indonesia alone. 

The onset of insect meal in agriculture suffers from lack of substrate. Our main innovation is in overcoming the lack while utilizing agricultural waste. Aquaculture suffers from high cost feed input. Agri-waste is problematic in many parts of the world, and giving it value, while producing fertilzer, expands agriculture's potential. These advances are low carbon conversions of major parts of the global food chain.

Many estimates exist, but in developing countries, upwards of 200 million metric tonnes per year of non-manure, agri-waste is produced, seeks disposal, and is un-utilized. Converting this waste to millions of tonnes of high value feed is now possible. In the initially selected palm oil industry alone, there is a calculated potential for millions of tonnes of feed, and of fertilizer, able to be produced from accessible agricultural waste, in Malaysia and Indonesia alone.

We are producing academic articles that present the experimental results,  and quantify the process operational parameters defined by prototype testing. We are progressing application for IP of the biotechnoloy process application. We will further author papers on the impact of the technology on improved sustainability of agriculture, under various crop scenarios. We have documented the positive impacts on an initial agri-industry, based on research into its operational characteristics. The utility of by-product fertilizer, and positive operational effects of the collection and processing of waste, have been calculated.  Further, we assess the impact of enabling farmers to access increased aquaculture and livestock production using locally produced feed, capable of replacing fish meal and soya bean meal.

The impact of localizing feed production alone is enormously positive. The concept removes significant carbon costs of transport and, production. This sustainable agriculture system has not been in need of a market survey, at this juncture. Continuous work with community and industrial development by the Institute, for upflift, provide the market assessment. Further academic, and commercial research does need to be performed. Despite the prototype establishing commercial potential, the process can be further improved. The biotechnology employed permits optimization of feed and fertilizer outcomes.

The Institute has a long history of delivering development to community farmers willing to explore this technology. Estate owners, and farmers are available to participate from the target groups. 

The Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries lays claim to a set of community development programs, which have positively impacted >10,000 individuals over the past decade.

The current program is at prototype stage. It is nonetheless verified in research and will be the subject of further funding applications. Funding is sought to work with an existing partner for commercial scale pilot and growth.

Our team is fundamentally non-profit, while we support industrial partners. Revenues contribute to the operation of an outstanding academic institution of higher learning providing education from technical outreach up to PhD by coursework and research. In our view, application of the technology, through our efforts alone, will help >10,000 people in the next year. Within five years, with our anticipated expansion, and the ultimate target of millions of tonnes per annum of high quality feed, we can reach millions.

From the current date:

Year One: Commercial pilot and growth at several oil palm estates, and rice paddy farm cooperatives. One State in Malaysia, and one location in Bangladesh. The model for replication is promulgated.

Year Two:

Obtaining funding to scale. Connecting with Ministries of Agriculture, and Fisheries in Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Cambodia (ongoing at present).

Development of commercial sharecropping concept to bring the technology to a large number of smallholders (rice paddy and palm oil).

Working with larger estates.

Supporting development of aquaculture projects based on the application.

Working with other Non-Profits (i.e., WorldFish) to obtain funding for demonstrations.

Year Three to Five:

Expansion in the 3 countries with industrial, Government, and non-profit partners.

Primarily, the barrier is funding. Being a Non-Profit in the Global South, our model is to secure available funding for academic research, and funding from industry who will benefit from the technology.

In the Global South, these revenues are unspectacular. With the achievement of commercial pilot in this instance, we expect to see more substantial interest in investment for commercial development.

We have formed a team of participants from Ministries of Agriculture, and Fisheries, other Non-profit institutions, and agri-industrial investors in Malaysia, Cambodia, and Bangladesh. We developed a Scaling Assessment, and have some initial agreements in place.

Primarily, the barrier is funding. Being a Non-Profit in the Global South, our model is to secure available funding for academic research, and funding from industry who will benefit from the technology.

In the Global South, these revenues are unspectacular. With the achievement of commercial pilot in this instance, we expect to see more substantial interest in investment for commercial development. At the same time, the cost basis that we operate at ensures high value of return for investment. Our technological level, and facilities, are world class.

We have formed a team of participants from Ministries of Agriculture, and Fisheries, other Non-profit institutions, and agri-industrial investors in Malaysia, Cambodia, and Bangladesh. We developed a Scaling Assessment, and have some initial agreements in place. However, what is in place is designed for incremental improvement to date, with only uncommitted funding. We must continue to apply for incremental funding to continue the program. 

As far as the commercial startup, we plan to develop the biotechnology producing variants of substrate. We then have access to an industrial partner operating insect production at factory scale, and can use this avenue to reach first stage commercial scale. Insect production can be transferred to existing feed mill(s) for production of our market product, initially for aquaculture.

We are producing a financial model, based on commercial scale facility operation. We detail all capex and opex. We can produce a Business Model Canvas, but our focus now is simpler, to fund our first stage commercial facility. This stage will permit the full scale evaluation of potential, and provide the type of fully grounded platform necessary for investors to come on board, from experience.

We also have a commercial history of bringing technologies to market, and we follow those modalities in delivery of this technology.

We anticipate a low cost development of the first commercial system. Subsequently, finance will be through competition from Government, NGO and private investment (investor or synergistic companies). We will pursue the agricultural industry producing the input waste as a business partner, and this opens the door to hundreds of large producers in the same industry.

The value per tonne of product can be gauged by comparison with the competing fish meal and soya bean meal. Costs of production are low, with the main input being a waste. Investment requirements are low for production occuring close to source, as an agri-enterprise on agricultural land, with a minimum of industrial equipment required inclusive to factory scale.

We have managed funding internally to date, for this project, piecing together industrial cooperations, Government grants, institutional, and private funding. The details are not available for disclosure.

$300,000 over two years 2021 and 2022 as grant. 

Equity is subject to discussion, but will be considered relative to achievement of project targets.

Zero. As a non-profit, we will support this project from the manpower perspective. 

With funding, we allocate firstly to physical resources. We supplement these from our ongoing project budgets, and facilities utilization, according to the value returned to our academic programs.

A detailed budget will be required, and is under preparation, for implementation of the commercial startup. We reserve the details of this budget along with the details of the process. 

The Institute proceeds with development as a non-profit. We are based in the Global South and our struggle is finance, much as it is globally for non-profits. 

There are many projects underway at the Institute. This project has great promise in terms of scale. Therefore, simply, we need a "foot in the (financial) door" to present this technology such that it may be noticed and receive further funding. We believe in the technology, but recognize that we must successfully pass our first commercial phase, while achieving additional research and development to further differentiate the products, define economics and impacts, and add value.

Scenario 1: some recognition but no seed funding. We translate publicity by pursuing Government funding for our project commercial testing.

Scenario 2: we will recieve a modicum of funding sufficient for a commercial test at minimum operational levels. We are fully prepared to input the complimentary resources to make this possible. We will pursue commercial testing on this basis, and pursue further funding to increase capacity to achieve full commercial operation (at a single location).

We understand the need to achieve a full commercial operation before the process can be expanded to scale. 

In a further scenario, which may proceed from the preceding, we will receive sufficient funding to achieve full commercial operation at one location. In this instance, we would be prepared to engage in formalization of the business entity, equity allocation, etc., to support a substantial investor. Our objective is scale, beyond the single commercial operation.

Outside of selecting partners who will be able to fund the development of scale, we maintain our core focus on academic research.

The technology has enormous scope for diversification. The biotechnology route permits optimization of insect generated feed and fertilizer as a first objective of research. There is additional potential to extract numerous compounds, and produce other products, which have purposes outside feed and fertilizer.

Our Institute provides a well-equipped facility in Malaysia, with English language yet central to Asia, delivering high quality higher education to PhD level by course work and research. The cost base of operation in Malaysia is very low compared with Western countries, for researchers and students alike. The 4,000 square meter experimental hatchery we operate is a prime example of the scale of potential. We have ready cooperation with many SEA and Asian nations.

The Institute welcomes cooperation from more developed countries as means to advance our goals of improving and delivering higher education in South East Asia, and Asia. This project could hopefully open doors for other project cooperation.