Insect Waste Management: A Sustainable Solution for Organic Waste
Organic waste is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions within the waste sector, and it’s growing rapidly. Food waste, agricultural byproducts, and other organic materials are typically disposed of in landfills or incinerated, both of which release substantial emissions and contribute to environmental degradation. For waste management companies, finding a profitable and environmentally-friendly way to handle organic waste has proven challenging, as traditional methods are both costly and highly polluting.
Increasingly, businesses are looking for solutions that allow them to process waste sustainably while also meeting Net Zero commitments. In fact, more customers are demanding that their waste be managed in greener ways, without adding to costs. Enter insect-based waste management, a novel approach that leverages the natural ability of insects to convert organic waste into valuable byproducts like protein and fertilizer. Using insect bioconversion technology, waste can be broken down and transformed in a low-carbon, cost-efficient way. This emerging method is a sustainable answer to organic waste that also opens new revenue streams for waste management companies, while reducing emissions and operating costs.
Greenbackers is pleased to introduce Flybox, a leader in Insect Waste Management (IWM) technology, which helps waste management businesses profitably and sustainably upcycle organic waste into valuable products – naturally!
Why Flybox:
- Innovative technology: Flybox manufactures and installs Insect Waste Management (IWM) systems that enable waste businesses to transform organic waste into valuable products. Customers receive juvenile black soldier fly larvae along with their usual waste streams. These larvae efficiently bioconvert the waste into protein and fertilizer inside Flybox’s state-of-the-art systems. Flybox also facilitates the lucrative buyback of these downstream products, ensuring that customers benefit from a circular solution.
- Commercial traction: Flybox has achieved significant milestones, including £850k in sales of their pilot-scale IWM solutions and has secured £700k in pre-seed funding, along with grants of £1m and £3m from Innovate UK. They’ve built the world’s first modular IWM site in the UK and formed partnerships with Harper Adams University and Nottingham Trent University, proving the commercial and environmental viability of their approach.
- Market potential: Flybox’s primary customers are waste management and waste infrastructure operators in the UK and Europe. Additionally, Flybox’s solutions have attracted interest from new insect farming companies and international development organizations globally. Their business model combines revenue from hardware sales, annual fees for software and consultancy, and plans for subscription-based support services and recurring revenue streams via partnerships and a farm operating system.
Investment Snapshot:
- Type: Seed Round
- Target amount: £1.5m
- Minimum contribution: £25k
For further information or to speak with Flybox directly contact:
Annika Borrmann at [email protected]
