HCi3 Makes Largest Investment to Date in Oberland Agriscience
HCi3 has made its largest investment to date through a $1,000,000 equity investment in biotech company Oberland Agriscience Inc., supporting their production of low carbon, high-value animal nutrition and fertilizer, known as frass. HCi3 joins several local impact investors who together have helped raise over $60 million in funding to date. Oberland is currently raising $10 million in support of their commercial production launch.
Founded in 2017, Oberland’s vision is to create a healthier future by harnessing the infinite potential of black soldier fly larvae (BSFL), leveraging biology-fueled technology to set new standards in animal and soil health. BSFL have ravenous appetites and consume most types of organic waste. By controlling the feedstock and other factors, Oberland controls the nutrient and frass characteristics, and optimizes the rate of growth and harvesting.
Oberland has built and equipped a 110,000 square foot building and is ramping up production; they plan to reach full production in the spring of 2026. The business boasts competitive pricing and has identified multiple opportunities for building additional plants in other regions in North America. Customers for the animal nutrition products include backyard poultry owners, aquaculture, livestock, and pet feed producers across North America. Oberland's frass is now rolling out to garden centres across North America under the 2nd Nature Plant Food brand.
From the energy-efficient building, to capturing and reusing the heat generated by the growing larvae, to repurposing organic waste headed to the landfill, Oberland has in a very deliberate way created a production process for animal nutrition and frass that results in dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions. At full production, Oberland’s animal nutrition and frass products produced at Plant 1 will result in an estimated emissions reduction of 170,648 MT CO2eq per year compared to the traditional proteins and fertilizers they are displacing.
You can read more about Oberland Agriscience here.