The BIOPROINSECT pilot project, which objective is to obtain high added value products through the bioprocessing of insects, publishes its first dissemination materials.

Led by the Galician company GALINSECT, BIOPROINSECT is a pilot project that arises from the need to diversify protein sources of high nutritional value. An innovative enzymatic process will be developed, comparable to a biorefinery, which will make it possible to obtain three products with high added value from the mealworm (T. molitor): high quality and highly digestible proteins, derivatives of chitin and fatty acids.

Started in mid-2021, BIOPROINSECT is comprised by a multidisciplinary team in which, in addition to GALINSECT, counts with the participation of Universidade de Vigo (through the Industrial Biotechnology and Environmental Engineering Group, BiotecnIA) and FEUGA, responsible for the dissemination activities.

BIOPROINSECT is a pioneer initiative at a Galician and Spanish level. Is for this reason that, the dissemination activities, led by FEUGA, have a particularly relevant weight for the transfer of the generated knowledge to the sector. Within the framework of these activities, BIOPROINSECT publishes the leaflet and the infographic of the project, materials that will allow agents of the agri-food value chain and the general public to learn about the initiative.

In the case of the infographic, it collects, in a schematic and visual way, the work plan of the project. In this way, it is sought that the reader receives a global vision of the actions that will be executed in BIOPROINSECT. For its part, the leaflet deepens into the explanation of the project, describing in greater detail both the objectives and the expected results, in addition to other aspects.

It should be noted that both materials are available in Galician, Spanish and English, to maximize their geographical reach and the impact of the solutions to be developed by BIOPROINSECT. Both the infographic and the leaflet are available for download in this news.

BIOPROINSECT is funded by grants to support pilot projects, development of new products, processes and technologies in the agri-forestry scope, co-funded by the European Agricultural Fund for the Rural Development (EAFRD), in the framework of the 2014-2020 Galician Rural Development Program (RDP). Total budget: €181,468.56; total grant: €145,174.85.

The Consellería do Medio Rural is the Galician Administration authority responsible for proposing and executing the general guidelines in the rural scope and encompasses powers in agriculture, livestock, rural development, and regional planning, rural structures, agri-food, and forestry industries, mountains, and prevention and defence against forest fires.