The conception of Stratium, which launched last month, started over a decade ago.
Spearheaded by Noco Energy Corp. President Jim Newman, River Road Research was formed in 2010 for research-and-design purposes targeting businesses of the future. Now, Stratium is gearing up to take one of those research concepts to market.
Buffalo-based Stratium feeds food waste to black soldier flies and uses the larvae – a part of its growth stage where an insect stores a lot of energy – to create protein. Its target markets are pet feed and treats as well as fish feed.
The goal is to alleviate both society’s food waste problem and the protein shortage.
The “market is looking for quality, consistent and reliable sources of protein, and that is really what we have focused on, treating ingredients to get high-quality, consistent output,” said Bobbie Thoman, Stratium managing director.
The company operates independently from Noco but is financially backed by the Newman family. Thoman plans to raise startup capital in the future.
The business is partnering with universities to have researchers study how fish can grow on feed with Stratium’s ingredients in it. In other words, the work will give the business its proof of concept as it prepares to take its protein product to market.
Currently, much of pelletized fish food is made from protein of other fish caught from the ocean.
“The system itself is not sustainable,” Thoman said. “It can’t continue as it’s going right now long term.”
The startup is looking for real estate to open an insect farm demonstration facility. Currently, Stratium’s product is being produced from the River Road lab in Buffalo.
Thoman wants the new facility to be as close to the sources of food waste Stratium is using as possible, so she’s targeting industrial or agricultural areas in New York state. The business, which employs three, currently has a handful of consistent sources of food waste and is identifying more.
Since the company already has a lot of the equipment needed, once it secures a site, it shouldn’t take long to start production, she added. She expects to begin production in 2024 and aims to churn out 500 tons of protein annually.
The business is also prepping to go to market by partnering with pet food brands that focus on sustainable, clean ingredients. Stratium sends them samples of its protein to use in their food formulas.
“Just because of the way the market is evolving, the timing is working out really well,” Thoman said. “As we bring production online, they’ll bring those products to market at the same time, and we can be bulk suppliers to them.”
