Innovation Revisited: Chapul Farms

In a previous issue of Enterprise, we featured the small team at McMinnville’s Chapul Farms who are trying to revolutionize the way the world recycles its food waste by utilizing black soldier fly larvae. A lot has happened in Chapul’s world since that issue was released and we are excited about some exciting developments.

Our team is hard at work performing basic and advanced research for the growing industry of insect agriculture at our innovation center in McMinnville, Oregon. Insect agriculture, specifically the rearing of Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL), is a rapidly growing field with promising potential to process low-value, undervalued, and often waste streams into high-value animal feed and fertilizer products. Chapul Farms builds customized commercial insect facilities that symbiotically integrate biology and engineering.

The Chapul Innovation Center is located on a 600-acre farm in collaboration with the nonprofit TAINABLE, a regenerative agriculture laboratory. At our center, we conduct laboratory analysis on various problematic waste streams to evaluate and bring to life our commercial projects in Oregon and beyond. Our projects showcase the climate and soil health benefits of insect agriculture.

Partnering with local organizations has been a top priority at the center. We've been conducting soil research trials with various small and large-scale farm partnerships in the cannabis, wine, and organic vegetable farming industries. By doing so, we're accruing invaluable data to co-create and build a more sustainable future, improving soil health and sequestering carbon in the soil. Additionally, we offer ongoing support for student research projects at various educational institutes, including Oregon State University and Chemeketa Community College.

Over the past few months, we've also provided educational events for interested community members. Stay tuned as we announce the invite for upcoming open-house events! Over 65 individuals have toured the Chapul Innovation Center. Visitors have included:

• Oregon State University

• Chemeketa Community College

• Linfield University

• Kentucky Office on Agriculture Policy

• Zero Waste McMinnville

• Northwest Redworms

• UNIDOS

• Scratch and Peck

• Shelf Engine

• Willamette University

• SEDCOR

• Ecotrust

Our commitment to promoting and pioneering a more environmentally sustainable circular economy continues. Farm-to-fork has been imperative in creating a stronger local community, yet it's still a linear, one-way path. That's why we're resolute in our purpose to upcycle would-be waste and close the loop. Our local partnership with one of McMinnville's top farm-to-fork restaurants, Humble Spirit, has seen our most recent successes. Humble Spirit provides pre-consumer food waste from their kitchen, which our insects consume, leading to essential protein-filled food sources to feed their chickens, ultimately finding a place back in the forks at the restaurant. By emulating this dynamic, nature-inspired zero-waste system, we strive daily to reduce waste and promote a sustainable food system.