A Singapore-based start-up, Inseact, has been leveraging the voracious appetite of the black soldier fly to create protein-packed nutrients for shrimp feed and fertiliser for plants.

The black soldier fly, in its larval form, feeds on organic waste, producing frass, a by-product that is rich in nitrogen and phosphorous and thus suitable to be used as plant fertiliser.

The larvae themselves can then be integrated into shrimp feed for aquaculture.

Mr Tim van Vliet, Inseact's chief executive, told The Straits Times that the firm is planning to use organic waste products such as empty fruit husks from palm oil production as feedstock for the insect larvae.

Many of these waste products would otherwise end up in carbon-emitting landfills. Now, they can be converted into high-quality protein for use in shrimp feed, he added.

This reduces the reliance on fishmeal as the main protein ingredient in aquaculture, which could also reduce the effects of overfishing, he noted.

Fish meal, a component of shrimp feed, is a type of powder typically made from small marine fish such as anchovies.

As Singapore does not have any oil palm plantations, the alternative protein company has set its sights on establishing commercial black soldier fly facilities in regional countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia, said Mr van Vliet.

The company recently received US$1.3 million (S$1.7 million) in seed funding to build a pilot black soldier fly research and development (R&D) facility in Singapore, which will focus on optimising production processes and output, through developing more innovative ways for fly breeding, for instance.

"We see Singapore as a strategic headquarters for our start-up to attract top talent and forge partnerships with local R&D institutions," said Mr van Vliet.

The pilot site will also serve as a foundation to test different processes and equipment for its first commercial site, which the company plans to set up in Malaysia next year. The commercial site will be able to produce more than 1,000 tonnes of protein annually.

"We are also looking to set up facilities in regional countries where oil palm plantations are located so that the waste products can be channelled to the facilities for use as feedstock," said Mr van Vliet.

The end goal would be to set up industrial-scale facilities in the region, each capable of producing about 10,000 tonnes of insect protein per year.

Inseact is now working closely with the Singapore Food Agency's Marine Aquaculture Centre on St John's Island to integrate the protein into shrimp feed, said Mr van Vliet.

He added that the protein product has benefits for shrimp growth, and can lead to cost savings for aquaculture farms due to reduced feed consumption, as the shrimp will also require less feed.

Lab tests with the new shrimp feed formula will be conducted this month at the Aquaculture Innovation Centre in Temasek Polytechnic, followed by large-scale commercial trials with the Lim Shrimp Organisation, which operates some of the largest shrimp farms globally.

Mr Djames Lim, chief executive of Lim Shrimp Organisation, told ST the insect protein can replace the fishmeal portion of the feed formulation.

"We should be able to replace up to 20 per cent of the fishmeal for now and later increase as we progress. Currently the insect protein is expensive, but after expanding its production, economies of scale should kick in and make it feasible to replace the use of fishmeal," he said.

Mr Lim expects future cost savings to be at around 20 per cent.

He added that it typically takes 80 to 90 days before shrimps can be harvested, depending on the type of shrimp and its growth rate. However, as the insect protein promises a faster growth rate for the shrimps, it may take only 70 days before they can be harvested.

As to why the black soldier fly larvae are so rich in protein, Assistant Professor Nalini Puniamoorthy of the National University of Singapore's Department of Biological Sciences said that as adults, the black soldier flies do not feed - all the energy that they need comes from the stored nutrients in their larval stage. This explains why the larvae eat so voraciously and store such high levels of proteins and fats.

Mr Michael Badeski, Inseact's chief operating officer, said that apart from using larvae as a protein component in shrimp feed, oil can also be extracted from them to serve as a feed supplement for farm animals.

The insect oil is high in fatty acids and can help improve nutrient digestibility, making it suitable for pig rearing and poultry farming.

The company is also hoping to work with farmers here to test its organic fertiliser, so as to help them boost their vegetable production in support of Singapore's goal to produce 30 per cent of its nutritional needs by 2030, he said.