Mialgae hopes to start off fish feed revolution

Young company innovates new method of feeding livestock by using whisky waste

A Scottish start-up company is on track to revolutionise the animal feed industry by producing an omega3-rich nutrient using the by-products of the whisky industry.

Douglas Martin, founder of Mialgae, has developed a process that uses pot ale – a by-product of the distillation process – to cultivate microalgae, which can be added to feed for farmed fish or livestock.

Founded by Mr Martin in 2016 while he was a masters student at Edinburgh University, the young company has been fattened with a round of awards and funding worth £630,000 in recent months.

The idea to develop algae for nutrition first hit the microbiologist when he was working for an offshore shipping contractor in the North Sea.

Looking out on an algal bloom, rich with seaweeds and microscopic phytoplankton but dangerous to marine life and a nuisance to his crew, Mr Martin thought there must be some other way to manage it.

In June, the company confirmed a £500,000 investment from Equity Gap, the angel syndicate founded by rugby international Jock Millican, along with the Scottish Investment Bank (SIB) and Edinburgh University’s Old College Capital.

This was followed by a further £100,000 from Scottish Edge, the government-backed funding competitions’ maximum award. Other support has included the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation, which delivers Climate-kic, a pan-european business support and development initiative for start-ups focused on environmentally sustainable innovation.

Mialgae has most recently been signed up for Scottish Enterprise’s high growth ventures programme as well as being selected for its Unlocking Ambition Challenge, a £4 million fund to support entrepreneurs chosen for the contribution they can make to the Scottish economy and wider society.

So far, the company has been focused on the research and development required to ensure it can develop the right type of algae that provides the greatest nutritional benefit and the conditions required to grow it.

They can then scale production of the new plant so that it can then supply an additive to feed producers.

The main focus for his algae food is the fish farming sector.

Picture: Paul Bock Douglas Martin, founder and managing director of Mialgae.