Corbion and Bunge’s AlgaPrime DHA awarded for aquaculture innovation

06 Oct 2017 --- AlgaPrime DHA, a sustainable, omega 3-rich whole algae ingredient produced by the joint venture partnership of Corbion, N.V. and Bunge Limited, has received the 2017 Global Aquaculture Innovation Award from the Global Aquaculture Alliance.

The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) is described by Corbion and Bunge as “a leading standards-setting organization for aquaculture seafood.” GAA established the award in 2012 to recognize individuals and companies finding new solutions to the key challenges facing aquaculture.

According to GAA, the 2017 Global Aquaculture Innovation Award garnered the strongest competition to date with entries from more than ten countries. Many of the innovations, including AlgaPrime DHA, originated from the aquafeed ingredient sector.

Honored to be given prize
Walt Rakitsky, Emerging Business & Corporate Account Leadership for Corbion, says the company is extremely honored to receive this award: “The Global Aquaculture Innovation Award represents the future of aquaculture, and we believe that AlgaPrime DHA is a key feed ingredient for the industry's continued growth.”

“A new sustainable and transparent source of long-chain omega 3 DHA, AlgaPrime DHA can responsibly enhance the nutritional value of seafood, delivering an important win-win for both people and the planet,” Rakitsky continues.

“Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing food production systems in the world – a market estimated to reach US$200 billion annually by 2020,” adds Miguel Oliveira, Bunge's Vice President of Global Innovation. “We're producing AlgaPrime DHA at an unprecedented scale to address this growing need, offering supply chain resilience and on-demand production without the constraints of geography, seasonality and changing climate conditions.”

AlgaPrime DHA is currently produced at Corbion and Bunge’s SB Renewable Oils joint venture facility in Brazil. Corbion and Bunge note that the facility embodies the principles of sustainable production to produce algae-based products with low carbon, water and land use impacts. Based on sugarcane feedstock, AlgaPrime DHA has a lower carbon and water footprint and higher yield per hectare than DHA produced from most other non-marine sources.

Last week, Corbion completed the purchase of TerraVia, which included AlgaPrime DHA. San Francisco-based TerraVia has developed a microalgae platform to deliver high-value ingredients with clear benefits, such as omega 3 oils for animal nutrition and tailored oils, structured fats and proteins for food, personal care and industrial applications.

Corbion Algae Ingredients operates an R&D center and pilot facility in San Francisco, US, a demonstration plant in Peoria, Illinois, US, and an industrial scale plant in Brazil in a joint venture (50.1 percent owned by TerraVia) with Bunge. The acquisition is expected to bring high-value creation potential for Corbion.