Backed by private equity, US insect startup plans aquaculture project

Backed by private equity, US insect startup plans aquaculture project

2017/12/29 1:10pm

US-based Organic Nutrition company backed by private equity plans to combine fish fed with insects and hydroponics at a new facility in Maine, reports Bangor Daily News.

The facility will be built at St. Joseph’s College in Standish, Maine, and farm fish in tanks which take waste to produce nutrient-rich water for growing produce. 

The project is backed by private equity firm Cate Street, which plans to use a combination of private financing, federal government support, its partnership with St. Joseph’s and a program for foreign investors. 

In August Organic Nutrition said it’s planning five facilities in four states. It hopes to fuel some of its future projects with $50 million in foreign investment through the China-based Da Tang Investment Group and the EB-5 program. 

The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program gives expedited green cards to investors who put more than $500,000 into a qualifying US business.