Calysta, Adisseo to build FeedKind facility in Saudi Arabia

New alternative protein facility is expected to be five times the size of maiden FeedKind fermenter in China.

Advanced discussions underway to build site five times the size of maiden FeedKind fermenter in China

Calysseo, a joint venture between alternative protein company Calysta and worldwide animal nutrition company Adisseo, intends to build an alternative protein facility in Al Jubail in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in partnership with Food Caravan.

Advanced discussions and detailed planning are underway between the partners, who have formalized their intent to move forward with a development in the country. The partnership is aiming to build a 100,000 ton-capacity fermenter in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to produce Calysta’s novel protein ingredients, which require no animal or plant ingredients to produce. It is hoped the facility could become operational by the end of 2026, pending necessary construction and approvals.

Confirmation over the intent to build comes after Calysseo announced it has successfully switched on its maiden 20,000-ton fermenter in China, which will produce FeedKind Aqua protein for the aquaculture market. The KSA facility would be five times the size of the current Chinese fermenter.

“Our mission is to help the world meet one of its most pressing goals – feeding a global population that’s set to hit 10 billion by 2050. To do that, we need more sustainable protein, and to produce protein in places we are not currently able to. That’s what’s so exciting about the possibility of a Calysseo facility in KSA,” said Alan Shaw, CEO, president, and co-founder of Calysta. “This would be our second industrial-scale plant and an important step on delivering enough sustainable protein to meet growing and pressing global demand. Our patented fermentation technology is proven to produce a high-quality protein ingredient and thanks to the efficiencies of using a naturally occurring bacteria process, we are ready to rapidly scale up and meet that demand.”

Calysta’s protein ingredients are produced by harnessing the power of a naturally occurring process that uses no animal or plant matter, requiring almost no water and no arable land, helping preserve biodiversity. The result is a non-GMO protein that is high quality and nutritious, with a wide range of amino acids and vitamins.

“Today’s announcement is another significant milestone as we quickly move towards more sustainable forms of producing protein. Calysseo is something we’re incredibly proud of, we’re committed to building on this valuable partnership with Calysta as we focus on bringing the next phase of development forward,” said Jean-Marc Dublanc, CEO of Adisseo, part of the Sinochem Group. “Together with Calysta, we share an ongoing commitment to improving the security and sustainability of the feed ingredient market, our facilities fulfil a considerable part of that promise.”

A gas allocation from the Kingdom’s Ministry of Energy has been received and a site has been nominated by the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu. The project is being supported by the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia and the National Industrial Development Centre.

Calysta’s protein ingredients have been validated in several independent trials with academics and professionals. Its FeedKind Aqua ingredient for use in aquaculture has been shown to be effective as a functional, nutritious feed ingredient in extensive trials across several popular aquaculture species, including seabass, bream, largemouth bass and salmon.

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