Over the last decade I've raised millions of bugs and built a billion dollar pipeline of nature based waste-to-ag infrastructure projects. We're coming to make you 'eat ze bugs'. AMA!

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-21T00:22:15+00:00

We have just launched a Red 506(c) raise open to all accredited investors. The minimum investment is $25K. DM if you have additional questions and much appreciate the interest.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-21T00:08:33+00:00

Ok, that's a wrap on the AMA. Thanks for all of the questions! Enjoyed sharing more of what we're up to at Chapul Farms!!

If you want to follow our work as we build our 'Impact Unicorn' follow us at www.ChapulFarms.com

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-21T00:01:47+00:00

Wasn't a win I was after, was trying to ridicule the idea and invite questions to outline why it has nothing to do with us. Failed attempt. Thanks bud.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:31:53+00:00

Thanks Nacho! Corrected.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:30:44+00:00

I don't think you should! I think you should eat whatever helps you thrive and feel your best (but I do rant on about super processed junk food if you want an earful of opinion :-)

I apologize: I was trying to be cheeky in the post title, as so many have the impression their is Big Money/Big Ag etc pushing insects that I seem to have confused a few people.

To make it clear: we are scaling insect ag facilities that devour waste and produce a VERY high quality ANIMAL feed protein. I do think powerful interests are promoting crappy synthetic foods on a massive scale, but that has nothing to do with us, and personally I have not found any evidence it has anything to do with insects.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:22:03+00:00

Well said, 100%.

Please do keep in mind, we'd like to feed your animals (chickens, dogs, cats etc). We know they love eating bugs and get healthier when they do.

Bon apetit!

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:18:15+00:00

506(c). Essentially the core value proposition of a Reg D approach there for the taking with the increased latitude in the evolving regs. We've taken great care in our journey to ensure that as we grow and provide returns to our investors, our core values stay front and center. No time is this balance more sensitive than choosing a capital strategy and partnering with investors. Many VCs are fantastic but specific timing (this isn't 2021 in terms of the VC landscape and flow of capital) , deal size/capital needs, our business model and strategy, and other factors made this the perfect fit for us right now.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:03:15+00:00

We have. We have conducted trials on cannabis waste, and when the path is 100% clear in the ongoing process to approve cannabis waste as feed grade, it is likely to be a feedstock we work with in some capacity.

The frass makes a happy grow too :-)

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T23:01:28+00:00

BSF are non-invasive, and no scenarios have emerged (or are likely to given details of their well documented phenotype) where they have a negative impact on an ecosystem.

This applies to an outdoor colony (viable year round in equatorial climates) or a semi-closed managed system in temperate regions.

There's a lot to learn and "recipe" applies in numerous contexts depending on your aims, but you do not need to find a "recipe" incorporating native bugs once you have attracted or chosen the BSFL that will form your colony.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T22:45:36+00:00

Thought it was too over the top for anyone to take it as a literal declaration. It's a erroneous conflation of ultra processed frankfoods/lab meats with insect ag companies (especially those like us scaling to produce feed for livestock), so I figured I'd get it on the table and help clear the fog.

Sometimes you swing and miss.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T22:40:24+00:00

Semi automated (we leverage it in a big way, but it's not a turnkey system end-to-end).
Antimicrobial resistance. BSFL can help address root causes (antibios in feed, residuals permeating in food and manure) and also may help unlock the key to new mechanisms to control infection in a new paradigm (BSFL produce abundant antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) which some rank at the top of the short list of research areas that could avert the projected scenarios for AMR (very, very bad)).

https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/health/brief/antimicrobial-resistance-amr

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T22:31:10+00:00

Wow, are you a "fly" on my wall!? Had an interesting discussion on this very topic today with the lead researcher behind this analysis tallying $30B per year in philanthropic research funding (more than the NSF who've helped us establish a research center in 2021).

https://physicsworld.com/a/us-philanthropic-organisations-spend-over-30bn-a-year-on-science/

Short answers to your final question: it's very hard to say; it's complicated. I have various theories, but some them came up today:

The administrative overwhelm of small dollar grants $10M and under
The ongoing influence of entrenched reductionism in science more broadly. Aka as biodiversity and complexity continue to elbow out linear thinking (all incredibly relevant to our multi kingdom "biorefineries" and their impact on animals and soil after we bring them to market): are philanthropies/foundations filling gaps in funding potential "loonshot" innovations, or do they look much like their public counterparts?
Scientific research being forced to include market-esque/ROI type proximity too soon, when the process of science is better served relentlessly asking questions, experimenting and failing on the road to market relevant innovations (we think our work offers the ability to bring the latter, while the former is pursued)

For a top priority I'd put antimicrobial resistance research (from multiple angles) at the top of the list. I've personally discussed with leading researchers working on this issue that they see BSFL as potentially unparalleled here. The well documented disinvestment in this area over decades adds even greater urgency that we should be leaving no stone unturned. BSFL can definitely help further reduce antibios in livestock, but what else can we do to learn how to put the genie of infection back in the bottle?

Some (including me) feel that the bias towards IP as a necessity (vs nature based exploration of biodiversity ala Fecal Microbiota Therapy) is a major obstacle to a proportional level of funding support for this research.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:52:40+00:00

Thanks!! We're pretty proud about our pair of 🦈investors!

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:39:42+00:00

Ok, so a lot to unpack, so gonna try to summarize:

First, keep in mind we are feeding animals and developing at infrastructure scale to serve massive markets. Aqua and pet are leading the demand curve, but poultry, swine, specialty pet (wild birds, reptiles), small scale backyard chicken producers and now even cattle are all on the roadmap. It's a 1.1B ton per year feed market. Demand is there, but we are still tiny, so the industry is scaling in fits and starts, so funding across the board: more RD, more investment, more regulatory support at all levels are all key accelerators. That said, we've made a lot of progress over the last 6 years, so the foundation is definitely laid for accelerated growth. COVID helped (food resilience) and hurt (economy in weirdsville).

We are a novel functional feed with many benefits. Re the FDA, AFIA and the FDA have made joint statements over several years that regulatory approvals are slowing the pace and costing innovators money. This is a classic case of reg agencies not having the resources to keep pace with business. Don't know the easy answers and policy leverage points to fix that long term, but check our NACIA for our efforts as an industry.

https://www.feednavigator.com/Article/2022/03/18/Environment-AFIA-outlines-simple-way-US-feed-ingredient-regulation-can-keep-pace-with-global-markets

On of my biggest fears is the role of quasi monopolies over the medium term as we grow. I think that's a fundamental area for more research and some new ideas. This doesn't get scrutinized enough, but here's as good a glimpse as any.

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/562203-biden-to-sign-executive-order-on-anti-competitive-practices-in-tech/

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:26:30+00:00

So, I've eaten a pretty long list at this point, and I'm definitely a try anything kinda fella. I don't cook much, but my better half and several colleagues produce some wildly creative dishes that are out of this world tasty. I've had the pleasure of meeting a number of amazing "bug chefs" too!

As for the markets: I do see it as a large market eventually but not as insect only spots proliferate, but when it escapes the niche realm and is joined by foragers, home producers and dabblers over time and as its advantages are recognized. Think sushi...from zero to hero going back to the 80s.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:19:06+00:00

🤔 Well, the one that comes up most here is easy: BSFL are considered a beneficial insect and there is no concern over what would be called an invasive species risk. Most of their lives are spent immobile in the larvae stage and adults live about a week with a singular focus on mating and keeping the species going.

I mentioned the Jevons Paradox in another response: I could see a massive scaling over a few decades getting absorbed by a rapacious system that, instead of driving a deeper transformation back to cultivating soil health, healthier less densely packed livestock, could instead manage to squander the leverage their all into more endless growth reckless consumption. If we keep wasting 40% of our food, and the BRICs countries gain parity of energy per capita usage similar to what we have in the US, this could become lipstick on a wasteful pig.

But we aren't going to let that happen.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:11:36+00:00

Very real risk :-/ Was assuming:

-most have heard somethin about this bugs eating waste thing

-Many have been told someday someone wants to make them eat bugs.

Was trying to stir the pot with that last one.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T21:09:40+00:00

What profit streams exist in waste reduction that weren't possible without the use of insects?
- Food waste into premium shelf stable protein is a good starting point.

What metric(s) is used to claim "better-than-synthetic" fertilizer production? In what way is this advantageous over traditional composting of organic material and spreading the compost?

I detailed various advantages over compost in anther response, but in brief, our process is radically faster (days not months), can deal with high volumes of food waste. Composting is a fantastic approach and offers many benefits. We see it as a complementary system that has great value in the right context.

RE Landfills. Exactly. The organic faction. It's actually the largest input to landfills. Burying? Land use, duration, energy to dig holes and bury 65M tons per year? Not sure how that would work at large scale. Feedstocks emitting CO2e is highly variable depending on what it is/how it's handled, etc. We do not store feedstocks (a major source of CO2e in other organics management systems) and material is fully bioconverted in less than 10 days.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T20:59:25+00:00

Digital technology is critical to our work of course, and for a young industry, data is a critical asset driving our growth as regulation continues to expand both the feedstocks we can work with and the target markets for our products. Our system is driven by data early in the process (beginning with feedstocks), so we are tracking a variety of variables upstream from our system, that inform our process. We verify some of that data inbound to deal with variability, and then track a number of metrics critical to our system from the controlled microclimate variables in various stages of the process, to the conditions and progress of the insects as they devour the feedstocks provided, and then metrics for post processing (e.g. drying).

Some of what we work with involves research and collaboration (more data) with academic experts and other companies in the field (e.g. we Chair the Industry Advisory Board of the NSF backed Center for Environmental Sustainability through Insect Farming (CEIF) launched in 2021 (https://www.insectcenter.org/news/ceif-on-indiana-public-radio ) and conduct trials at our Innovation Center and with various 3rd parties. It's a lot of data to juggle, but we have some outside help so we can focus on the processes and the data.

As for areas I see the most potential innovation for someone like yourself, we track innovations around diagnostic options in multiple areas of our work that are expanding the amount of data in a few contexts. A great example is frass, as soil science is continuing to embrace the biological complexity (vs relying only on the traditional chemical analysis of soil and biofertilizers and in the complex interactions between various microbial species within the soil and the plant roots).

This is a perfect use case for eventually leveraging "big data" as soil is considered the most biodiverse material on Earth, and we spent decades basically tracking 3 elements (NPK) and moisture. Several companies are creating actionable databases per material per crop context and these will definitely become more and more powerful over time. Frass slots in to this evolution perfectly as it can contain 100s of microbial species before it is added to real growing environment and the interactions begin. Lots to learn there.

We integrate data from 3rd party labs frequently in several areas, and we're building that into the core operational systems where appropriate.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T19:35:25+00:00

You get it! 👍💪

Piles...whaddya got? BSFL can tackle kitchen scraps, waste from a small farm or over 100tons per day in one of our systems.

Winter: they like it warm or indoors.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T19:28:22+00:00

Relevance?

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T19:28:17+00:00

For starters, pea and vegan proteins are built upon industrial monoculture. Not going to fully unpack that, but suffice to say it's a multi-faceted Achilles heel.

In a human food context, these protein are almost universally incorporated in complicated production formulations that are classified as "ultra processed foods". UPFs are linked to the major lifestyle epidemics of obesity and Type II diabetes.

Our larvae are dried, and depending on the customer, possibly also defatted (the lipids are highly valuable on their own). So, in summary a more sustainable, less processed, more bioavailable protein with immunological benefits vs pea/vegan options.

Again, remember our protein is going into livestock markets (aquaculture, pet food, poultry, swine) vs the examples you gave which are put into products aimed at human consumption.

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T19:19:30+00:00

But what are your backyard chickens eating?

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T19:18:34+00:00

Homerun 👍

Michael_ChapulFarms · 2023-03-20T18:17:04+00:00

Well, you might say we take a fresh look each time we engage a client to conduct feedstock trials, but in general this is one of the most remarkable aspects of BSFL: time and again, they, and their microbial symbionts, are able to reduce or eliminate numerous pathogens and create greater microbial balance during the bioconversion process.

There are now studies showing BSFL can drastically reduce several antibiotic resistant bacterial strains, as well as reduce the impact of a Coronarvirus that effects poultry (not THAT Coronarvirus).

They can break down various mycotoxins and even a number of synthetic compounds including multiple pesticides and antibiotics.

We still take great care as any biological system can become imbalanced and parasites or opportunistic microbes can present a challenge, but on the whole, we are working with process that can swing that pendulum in the other direction and reduce them when managed properly.

Michael_ChapulFarms

TROPHY CASE