French former rugby union star Benjamin Kayser officially opens Entocycle’s Centre for Insect Technology
Keiran Whitaker, Benjamin Kayser and Matt Simmonds. Photograph: Robin Pope/Entocycle.
5 Apr 2024
Friday 5th April, 2024 – French former rugby union player Benjamin Kayser officially opened Entocycle’s Centre for Insect Technology in London last week.
The ex-international and recent ITV pundit is an investor in Entocycle through Teampact Ventures, a venture capital firm he co-founded that invests in and provides coaching from the world of high-performance sports stars to impact-driven startups.
The Centre for Insect Technology, believed to be the world’s most advanced insect technology demonstration facility, is designed to develop and showcase the cutting-edge technologies crucial for scaling the insect protein industry globally.
The facility’s technological features include computer vision, a sophisticated climate control system, automation, and real-time data analysis of a black soldier fly colony. By integrating Entocycle’s technology into insect farms, operators can unlock new levels of productivity, profitability, and sustainability.
Last year, Entocycle partnered with global technology giant Bühler in a significant joint venture to accelerate the transition to insects as a more sustainable protein source for animal feed. The companies will work together to deliver complete industrial-scale black soldier fly farm solutions to customers.
Entocycle secured funding for the centre’s development in 2020 through Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency. The agency’s Transforming Food Production Programme has invested £90m in projects that offer new ways to produce food that reduce emissions and pollution and contribute to feeding a growing global population.
“Today, we witness one of the most tangible outcomes of a £10m collaborative research and development project, a testament to Innovate UK’s strategic investment of £90m in grant funding through the Transforming Food Production programme. This initiative is propelling UK food production systems towards Net Zero emissions by 2040,” said John Stones, Innovate UK’s Grant Monitoring Officer, highlighting the pivotal role of public-private partnerships in driving innovation.
Entocycle’s Managing Director, Matthew Simmonds, added, “I’d like to thank all our investors. We’re lucky enough to be supported by several leading climate tech funds, a group of international sports stars, high-net-worth individuals, and, of course, Innovate UK. Thank you for believing in us and this mission to make the world a more sustainable place.”
The significance of the official opening was emphasised by Teampact’s co-founder Benjamin Kayser, “I’m extremely proud; this is a huge milestone for Entocycle, so hats off to the team for the hard work. There is a generation of athletes who genuinely want to invest their capital, time and heart towards positive innovation, and we’re extremely proud to have some of the most elite performers at Teampact supporting our investment with Entocycle, such as Antoine du Pont, the captain of the French rugby team and French handball legend Nikola Karabatic. We owe a more sustainable food system to the world, and we all must do our absolute best for future generations.”
About Entocycle
Entocycle is the UK’s leading provider of insect farms and insect farming technology. Launched in 2017 by Keiran Whitaker, the company exists to accelerate a global transition to sustainable protein through insects, innovation and technology. The London-based company offers complete insect farm design and build services enabling new market entrants to convert organic waste into high-value insect proteins, fats and fertilisers, as well as technology to improve production efficiencies at existing black soldier fly farms. Entocycle has received notable press coverage from The New York Times, Forbes, The Guardian, BBC and Netflix as a leading voice in a rapidly-growing industry.
More information
UKRI Transforming food production challenge
Media contact
Jude Bliss, Marketing Director
E-mail: media@entocycle.com