Founded in 2015 by Jérôme COSTIL and Christophe TRESPEUCH (respectively Agricultural and Veterinary Engineer and still in the management of the company), MUTATEC settled in Châteaurenard.
This establishment near Avignon has allowed access to food losses of plant origin, collected on the National Interest Market, from farmers or local agro-industries.
The period 2015-2019 was devoted to the development of production processes, the improvement of performance parameters, the product qualification tests and the first sales.
Invited to numerous events on innovation and sustainability, the "start-up" MUTATEC has won several competitions and has been the subject of numerous press articles and television reports (France Télévision, Ushuaïa TV, Les Échos, La Provence, Vaucluse Hebdo, L'Agriculteur Provençal...)
Since its creation, MUTATEC has developed expertise (CertiFLY© program, supported by ADEME) on the control of the sanitary quality, in order to guarantee the safety of raw materials, processes and final products. The company has also forged high-level scientific partnerships with the University of Turin, INRAE, ITAVI and the University of Avignon.
Trials of incorporation of MUTATEC products into fish feed (trout, salmon, sea bream, shrimp) both in experimental stations and in fish farming, have demonstrated the interest of these ingredients for the aquaculture sector.
These convincing results have been the subject of numerous publications and presentations at scientific conferences. The use of protein meal, live insect larvae and fats has also been tested in collaboration with major poultry and egg producers, highlighting interesting health and welfare elements.
Similarly, close collaborations have been developed with the pet food sector (Petfood, ornament), concretized by tests and commercial contracts for the purchase of MUTATEC products.
Since its creation, MUTATEC has received financial support from the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur Region (now the Sud Region) and ADEME, through the "Filidéchets" and "Initiative PME" programs.
Two industrial partners also wished to provide their support: the company SEDE Environnement, of the VEOLIA group, whose industrial know-how is recognized in the collection and management of residues. As well as the cooperative group LE GOUESSANT, leader in the production of feed for aquaculture in France.
Also a member of IPIFF (International Platform of Insects for Food and Feed) since 2016, MUTATEC actively participates in the projects of several working groups and discussions with the European Commission, aimed at changing regulations.
Since the creation of the company, MUTATEC has conceived insect farming as an activity that maximizes the potential of circular economy, industrial ecology and generally the valorization of existing resources.
MUTATEC's approach is based on the recycling of agricultural and agri-food residues that are not or poorly recovered and of local origin, making it possible to place farms in a local circular economy loop (supply within a radius of 25 to 35 km) and to minimize CO2 emissions from the outset. The consumption of agricultural inputs transported over long distances or even imported is excluded.
