Vinh Hoan Expanded Strategic Partnership With Entobel

Entobel Signs Agreement with Vinh Hoan for the Supply of Insect Protein to Accelerate Vinh Hoan’s Transition Towards More Sustainable Pangasius Production

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, February 15, 2024 – Progressing closer towards the goal of building a more sustainable and resilient aquaculture supply chain, Entobel and Vinh Hoan announced the signing of an expanded strategic partnership. The partnership includes an offtake agreement by Feed One, a subsidiary of Vinh Hoan, to purchase a substantial volume of insect protein produced at Entobel’s Vung Tau factory in 2024. 

This landmark partnership builds upon the global leadership of both companies in developing a more sustainable food system with a lower environmental impact and accelerating the adoption of insect protein in aquaculture.

In addition to the offtake for 2024, through this agreement, Vinh Hoan will purchase a minimum of 15,000 metric tons of insect protein from Entobel over the next three years, from 2025 to 2027, inclusive.

“Today, in collaboration with Entobel, we are creating a more sustainable and resilient aquaculture value chain with the added benefit of incorporating nutritious aquaculture feed ingredients with demonstrated health and immunity benefits,” said Ms. Nguyen Ngo Vi Tam, the CEO of Vinh Hoan. “Vinh Hoan recognizes that a crucial element in feeding the world’s growing population while protecting the ocean’s ecosystem and biodiversity is to ensure that aquaculture feed ingredients come from sustainable sources. Accelerating the adoption of Entobel’s insect protein in pangasius production will make it possible for Vinh Hoan to source aquaculture feed ingredients in a more sustainable way and use feed ingredients that are not in direct competition with human nutrition, facilitating a more responsible aquaculture industry.”

In November 2023, Entobel set an industry record with the successful commissioning and scale up of its production plant in Vung Tau, Vietnam, the largest insect protein production plant in Asia.

“Entobel’s expanded partnership with Vinh Hoan is a decisive boost of confidence in Entobel’s ability to produce insect protein at scale and at cost levels that are competitive to fish meal, today. This partnership will further strengthen our capacity to deliver Entobel’s insect protein to our global customers,” said Gaëtan Crielaard, co-founder and co-CEO at Entobel.

Entobel is targeting the launch of its Series C funding round in Q2 2024 to support its regional growth plans as it prepares to build new facilities in key markets, including Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia. Entobel’s plan for rapid regional expansion is underway as the Company has successfully de-risked the operational and technological aspects of the business model while demonstrating strong commercial traction for its products.

About Vinh Hoan

Established in 1997, Vinh Hoan Corporation (HOSE: VHC) is the world’s largest producer of pangasius fish and a pioneer in sustainable functional proteins in Vietnam. Vinh Hoan has a farm area of 750+ hectares and exports its products to 45+ countries. Vinh Hoan is committed to producing products with the highest quality fish, sustainably. Vinh Hoan is headquartered in Vietnam.

Vinh Aquaculture, a division of Vinh Hoan, is committed to increasing the productivity of food and wellness products in a manner that is both sustainable and profitable. Through innovative practices, Vinh Hoan is actively working to set benchmarks and align industry incentives that will lead to the responsible development of the aquaculture industry. 

In 2021, as part of its sustainability roadmap to reduce its carbon footprint, protect the aquaculture ecosystem, address the loss of ocean biodiversity, and accelerate the shift towards sustainable aquaculture, Vinh Hoan signed a strategic partnership that included an equity investment in Entobel. Since 2021, both companies have been working in close collaboration to reduce the use of wild-caught fishmeal in aquafeed diets.

About Entobel

Founded in 2013, Entobel is a global leader in the sustainable production of high-quality, functional

In November 2023, Entobel began operations of the world’s most CAPEX-efficient black soldier fly production facility in Vung Tau, Vietnam. This state-of-the-art factory features 50 levels of vertical rearing and leverages automation using robotics, cutting-edge sensors, and data analytics. Entobel’s Vung Tau facility is one of the largest insect protein production sites globally with an annual production capacity of 10,000 metric tons of insect protein.

Entobel has a clear line-of-sight for regional expansion including continued expansion in Vietnam and is in discussions to build new production facilities in other key markets in the region. 

About Feed One

Feed One, also known as Vinh Hoan Feed, is a subsidiary of Vinh Hoan Corporation. Vinh Hoan owns a 75% equity stake in Feed One. Feed One is a global leader in the production of aquaculture nutrition and is headquartered in Vietnam.

Feed One has a feed mill in My Hiep, Dong Thap province, Vietnam, that produces pangasius aquafeed with a capacity of 350,000 metric tons per year. This site, operating at full capacity since April 2023, aims to improve the quality of pangasius and optimize production costs.