Opportunity for

• Australian horticulture, broadacre and pasture farms to trial organic certified fertiliser and soil enhancer made from black soldier fly castings and exoskeletons.

Opportunity description

Industry Challenge:

Natural ecosystems produce some of the most productive soils in the world without the need for synthetic fertilisers. These ecosystems are typically highly populated with insects, which rapidly convert organic material into insect castings (frass).

Frass has many unique properties that fertilise and stimulate the soil food web, which in turn feeds and protects the plants. Modern agricultural soils tend to lack the quantities of frass found in wild ecosystems, and therefore have reduced biodiversity, soil health and overall productivity.

Bardee uses black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) to convert food waste into high-value insect protein for pet and stock feed, and an organically certified fertiliser and soil conditioner, called Superfly®, which is ready for use in farms across Australia.

Current opportunity:

Superfly® is the first black soldier fly (frass) fertiliser available on the market. It is currently distributed across Australia and New Zealand in bulk and retail packaging sizes. There are over thirty commercial trials taking place in Australia with various crops and soil types. We are seeking to extend commercial trials into more crop varieties.

Opportunity background:

Bardee is on a mission to reshape the global food system. To do this we're transforming food waste into protein and fertiliser with insects. In the next 30 years food production must double to feed our growing global population, and at the same time cut emissions to at least net zero. Today, over 30% of food produced is wasted and taken to landfills where it breaks down and produces methane, a gas 80 times more potent than CO2. Furthermore, the nutrients in food waste are lost and have to be replaced with finite resources of mined fertiliser like urea and phosphate.

Bardee has successfully built a 24/7 operating facility processing tens of tonnes of food waste into organic certifier fertiliser and insect protein for pet food and animal feed. Bardee is the first to market with black soldier fly products in Australia and the first insect technology in the world certified to produce carbon credits.

Every tonne of insect protein produced offsets an incredible 50 tonnes of CO2e emissions. Bardee is on a path to build its technology in 10,000 cities around the world to produce truly sustainable commodities scale fertiliser and protein inputs for a resilient, secure food system for everyone, everywhere.

Potential other applications

Both fine granule and pellet fertiliser formats are available. We have developed a liquid fertiliser with successful pot trials and are seeking farms interested in collaborating on the early field trials.

Bardee's insect protein is available in bulk for pet and animal feed production. Both meal and mince are available. Bardee is able to provide feed formulation support for poultry and aquaculture applications.