Daniel Murta | Entogreen | Questionnaire
What are the main outcomes of your work on blue bioeconomy?
EntoGreen’s process aims to contribute to increase the sustainability of the agri-food sector. Blue bioeconomy is related to this aim as we can provide alternative nutritional solutions for aquatic animal production, contributing not only to increase its production sustainability but also to decrease the need to exploit our seas.
We have been working with the fish feed producers and aquaculture producers to evaluate how our nutritional solutions, insect protein, can replace traditional feed ingredients, such as fish meal. These research lines, being developed in collaboration with national and international research centers, not only focus on the efficiency of fish feed ingredient replacement but also its impact in fish health and fish products, ensuring that this novel fish feed formulas can safely replace traditional ones.
A project on blue bioeconomy you participated in and that you are proud of
Although with several submitted projects on the blue bioeconomy, from the use of insect protein and insect oil in fish feed for shrimp, sea bass, sea bream to aquaponics systems, none of them have achieved results yet, and thus, although with several international results pointing in this direction, we are still working towards presenting our own conclusions.
The best blue bioeconomy tip you follow on your daily life
Besides feed ingredients’ replacement, our company is very concerned with plastic and water. Thus, not only in our daily life we have concerns regarding plastic waste disposal and water consumption as our company is also developing plastic alternatives using insect chitin (a new biodegradable polymer), and we are also contributing to the development of a novel waste water treatment.
A course, an event, a meeting, a person who impacted and changed or reinforced your ideas/methods/working procedures – good practices
During my PhD I discussed about new technologies almost every day with post-docs colleagues. In 2011 one of my colleagues sent me a Ted Talk named, Why not eat insects. EntoGreen project started in that same moment. – https://www.ted.com/talks/marcel_dicke_why_not_eat_insects.
How do you imagine blue bioeconomy in 30 years? Forecast
I believe we are going towards a more sustainable agri-food sector in which food products will be created though a very sustainable, and many times, circular processes. I believe that in 30 years we will have a society more connected to the sea and to the marine environment, a sustainable society where nutritional loss is low and where we can prevent environment contamination and exploitation. I hope to be able to see a marine environment thriving and our country taking full advantage from its long connection to the ocean.
The best about working with B2E
EntoGreen is one of the funding companies of B2E and it has been great to follow its development. Our collaboration has increased in the last few months and we had the opportunity to work with this dynamic and motivated team already in two calls.
An idea to improve work with B2E
I won’t say B2E team is perfect, but our last experiences working with B2E couldn’t have been better.
When you are not working, you are:
Enjoying nature.
