NEWS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE February 2023 11 Protenga expands smart insect farm with new funding One of the circular economy initiatives Protenga announced The Yield Lab Asia Pacific as its latest investor. “Looking to an eventful and successful 2022, we are delighted to welcome The Yield Lab Asia Pacific as our latest investor in Protenga, closing our current funding round for the first time. As we further expand Protenga’s operations, we look forward to working with The Yield Lab Asia Pacific team and accessing their extensive network of relevant industry experts,” the company said in a statement. The company will evaluate The Yield Lab Asia Pacific’s investment in the 2nd generation smart insect farm production platform. SEEDS Capital and JBI Innovations also attended the first close. “The Yield Lab has a fantastic Asia Pacific and Global reputation and presence, and the expertise to back it. We are strongly aligned with their mission to sustainably revolutionize agrifood systems thanks to our scalable renewal nutrition production platform” said Leo Wein, Founder and CEO of Protenga. Protenga’s technology production platform is developing fast, with current insect farming facilities having reached several key productivity and cost milestones this year. Based on these operating validations achieved in 2022, Protenga’s second generation Smart Insect Farm blueprint will see its first deployments together with strategic partners in 2023. Read more>> The environmental contaminant PFAS (Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) was found in organic eggs from chicken farms from all over Denmark, whereas the content was low in eggs from free-range, barn and battery hens. This is shown by a study carried out by the DTU National Food Institute in collaboration with the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration. According to a statement from the institute, the substances are most likely transferred via the fishmeal used for feed. This relationship was found because uniform concentrations and compositions of PFAS compounds was found across large chicken flocks that consume organic feed. Especially children aged 4 to 9 years who eat more than 2.5 organic eggs per week are at risk of getting too much of the unwanted substance. The European Food Safety Authority, EFSA, has set the tolerable weekly intake of the sum of four specific PFAS (PFOA, PFNA, PFHxS and PFOS) at 4.4 nanograms per kg body weight per week. Among the children who eat many eggs (5-6 eggs per week), the intake is 10 nanograms per kg body weight per week. In addition, all citizens in Denmark are further exposed to PFAS from many other foods and sources, all of which contribute to the total intake. “When children are at risk of being exposed to more than twice as much PFAS solely from eggs as the amount that is the limit for a safe intake, the risk is noticeable. Especially when the intake for all age groups is close to the limit of what EFSA assesses as safe,” said Associate Professor Kit Granby from the DTU National Food Institute. Read more>> PFAS found in organic eggs in Denmark
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