By the year 2050, 50% more of the total protein currently produced will be needed to continue feeding an increasingly large global population. Given this expectation, the gastronomic industry is exploring alternative proteins to traditional animal ones, which pollute less and can be produced massively, such as plant-based or insect-derived protein. In this international race, Barcelona-based Heura Foods has managed to convince the public with its plant-based protein meat and now Sant Cugat-based Becrit, which uses insect protein, is starting to stand out.
Becrit is the project of Sergi Playà and Daniel Morato, two childhood friends who decided to promote it to find a more sustainable and healthy way to produce food and overcome the cultural barriers that exist regarding insect consumption. According to Playà, manufacturing this type of animal protein is more beneficial than doing so with traditional protein because insects consume less water; they need less space ---it can even be produced in vertical farms---; everything from insects can be used, and they do not produce CO2. Added to all this are the intrinsic characteristics of insect protein, with more protein content, healthy fats, and nutrients than meat.
The story of this Sant Cugat startup began on an island in Cambodia a few years ago. Playà worked as a chef and his colleagues encouraged him to try a cricket. He was surprised because it had a taste similar to nuts and began to wonder why they were not consumed in Barcelona, considering their benefits compared to other proteins.
Before returning to Barcelona, Playà visited insect farms in Thailand where he tried worms, scorpions, and grasshoppers, with the intention of understanding these foods a little more. And he continued to be surprised, discovering that insects can taste like cheese or seafood. When he arrived in Barcelona, after two years traveling through Australia and Asia, he began to think about the possibilities of consuming insect protein here and this idea crystallized in early 2019 with the other co-founder of Brecrit, Daniel Morato.
[subscribe_newsletter_esp]Morato and Playà began by marketing European brands that based their products on insect protein through online sales, with the intention of understanding the market and beginning to define the project. They quickly realized that these types of products are mainly aimed at athletes, due to the high level of protein offered by these animals. A year later, Becrit presented its first product, a protein shake with chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla flavors, which also sought to find its place in herbal stores. To try it, you just have to mix the powdered insect protein with plant-based drinks, such as almond milk, or water, and prepare to be surprised.
But Becrit's objective goes beyond shakes and is working to create a burger based on insect protein, which will allow it to conquer a wider audience and convince more people of the virtues of this type of protein. Playà and Morato anticipate that this new burger could be ready by mid-this year. To do this, as with the shakes, the startup uses very small larvae produced in the Netherlands, which Playà assures are not repulsive. Even so, in case imagining this burger still causes apprehension, the co-founder of the company assures that these insects will not be visible in the burger, as in the shakes, but rather will be the base for producing them. That is to say, it will be a burger like always, with a texture like meat and, yes, an innovative taste.
The urgency of more research
Since their origins, the promoters of Becrit are aware that the insect protein market is too green and that resources must be allocated to research and development (R&D) to see which approaches can best fit the national market. That is why the startup has allied with Gastro Ventures, a gastronomic innovation company that evaluates the different future trends emerging in the field of food tech. Also from Sant Cugat, Gastro Ventures does this in two ways: researching in the laboratories it has in the Esade Creapolis business park and promoting the creation of spin-offs or betting on companies like Becrit.
Gastro Ventures has become a partner of Becrit and in exchange will contribute its team of researchers to the startup, led by the former scientific director of El Bulli and co-founding partner of the company, Pere Castells. In this way, Gastro Ventures and Becrit will study the launch of new products with insect protein such as a hamburger. Likewise, Gastro Ventures will also help them define their strategy and business plan. "This agreement allows us to go a step further, grow and professionalize our research to be able to establish and normalize the consumption of insects in our society," Playà remarks.
Becrit also plans to start outlining its second round, which they estimate will be at the end of 2021. The first was in mid-2020 and raised 130,000 euros, which were added to the initial investment made by Playà and Morato of between 15,000 and 20,000 euros. Currently, Becrit's staff consists of the two co-founders and a person in charge of marketing. By mid-year, they also plan to hire more staff.