NEWS 10 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE February 2026 Phileo by Lesaffre, one of the global leaders in probiotics and functional ingredients for animal nutrition, and Nasekomo, a European biotech company specializing in industrial insect bioconversion, announced a long-term strategic research partnership aimed at accelerating innovation in the rapidly evolving insect industry. The collaboration is formalized through a multi-year R&D framework agreement covering joint research, co-development, and knowledge exchange between the two companies. According to a statement, at the core of the partnership is a shared ambition to unlock the full potential of microorganisms and insects working together to improve efficiency, scalability and profitability in insect-based production systems. The first concrete project under the partnership focuses on the development and validation of a probiotic solution tailored specifically for insects. While probiotics are widely used and well-established in sectors such as poultry, swine, and aquaculture, their application in insect farming remains largely unexplored at an industrial and regulatory level. “Insects and microorganisms naturally function as a biological system. By selectively enhancing microbial communities with targeted probiotics, we can support more efficient nutrient conversion and more resilient production processes. Our collaboration with Phileo allows us to do that in a scientifically robust and industrially relevant way,” said Marco Tejeda, Nasekomo’s R&D Manager. Read more>> U.S. poultry producers now have additional tools to combat avian metapneumovirus, a highly contagious and costly virus impacting turkeys, broiler chickens, and laying and breeding birds. With cold weather approaching around the country and birds becoming more susceptible to viruses during these colder months, Elanco Animal Health and HIPRA introduced two avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) vaccines to help poultry producers manage this costly respiratory disease. aMPV is a highly contagious respiratory disease affecting turkeys and chickens. It causes significant economic losses due to reduced egg production, increased mortality rates, and decreased performance in infected flocks. The virus primarily affects turkeys, with an estimated 60-80% of commercial turkey flocks nationwide impacted by aMPV; yet broilers and laying and breeding birds are also susceptible to the virus. Certain husbandry and ventilation tactics can help the outcome; however, vaccination is a critical tool to effectively control the virus. “Avian metapneumovirus has led to devastating losses for many producers,” said Scott Gustin, U.S. Poultry Technical Leader at Elanco Animal Health. “The aMPV subtypes A and B were foreign to the U.S., and after seeing this virus spread now from coast to coast, it became clear that biosecurity was not going to be sufficient on its own to combat the virus. Vaccines became the clear solution to reduce the impact of this highly contagious respiratory disease.” Read more>> Strategic R&D partnership aims to bring probiotics to insect farming Two new vaccines aim to control aMPV in U.S. poultry Photo: Phileo by Lesaffre and Nasekomo
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjkxNQ==