Cell-based Surimi
One day while working as a biologist, Aaron Chua Yu Xiang had a friend who presented him with a question: why not become a pescatarian? At first he was sold however the more he began to research, the more he realised the plethora of issues - bycatch, parasites, micro-plastics - associated with the fishing industry. As a result, Aaron founded Fisheroo, a cell-based fish startup focussing on cultivating freshwater products, in particular surimi. We chat with Aaron about the difference between growing unstructured versus structured cell-based products, micro-carriers, and his thoughts on vertical integration, plus more on Fisheroo’s approach and the personal experience of the journey so far.
Once Aaron had decided to found Fisheroo, the next steps were to find a founding team to help bring the vision forward.
Aaron: “I was pretty lucky to be able to find my founding team in record time.”
Aarom: “We were actually co-workers before, working on Parkinson’s disease, and I became rather confident that they were the ones.”
Aaron: “They were mission driven, they were all about sustainability, and most importantly they are hard-working individuals.”
Not to mention the fact that their previous research skills provided a solid foundation for the work required to grow cell-based meat.
Aaron: “What we learned researching Parkinson’s was cellular biology and molecular biology”
Aaron: “So we developed different skills in cell culture, in analytics … that helped a lot when we moved into the cultivated meat industry.”
So what does Fisheroo do?
The Singaporean startup has a focus on freshwater fish, in particular cultivating surimi; a form of fish paste that originated from Japan.
Aaron: “You may not have heard of surimi before, but you may have heard of imitation crab sticks… yes these are made from fish!”
But why focus on this niche?
For Aaron and the team at Fisheroo, surimi had the upper hand in terms of scalability and possibility.
Scalability
Aaron: “Because surimi is a fish paste it means it’s unstructured; we don’t require scaffold during production process which has significant reductions for production costs, by 40x which is huge.”
Aaron: “Multiple bio-processors downstream can be taken out of the equation, which reduces significant complexity from the entire process.”
Possibility
Aaron: “Surimi as a fish paste is highly customisable in terms of its taste, texture, colour and literally the sky is the limit in terms of use applications. One such example is the ability to integrate with plant-based products which we’re currently in the midst of exploring.”
In terms of consumption, Aaron went on to mention that Asia holds a market share of ~50%, but it’s consumed everywhere.
Aaron: “There are many items in the market that contain surimi, but it’s just that we don’t market it out as surimi, we market it out with a different name.”
The key to the cost reduction lies also in what makes producing an unstructured product like surimi versus something structured like a fish fillet.
Aaron: “So for surimi we use microcarriers, and for structured products we use a scaffold.”
Aaron: “The 40x cost reduction really comes from the price difference in microcarriers versus the scaffolds that are out there in the market.”
But what is a microcarrier?
Essentially microcarriers are small matrixes used as a support platform for cells to adhere to and grow. Their porous nature and hollow interior means they have a larger surface area, facilitating a higher number of cells per unit of space.
The use of innovations like microcarriers leads to bigger questions about Aaron’s thoughts on vertical integration, a phenomenon where companies are focused on creating their own production facilities.
Aaron: “We actually have a different view on that. We’ve been thinking of satellite production facilities where we are able to bring the bioreactors close to the factories that require them.”
Fisheroo’s target customers such as conventional surimi production manufacturers and plant-based companies will be able to install a modular facility to create a (mostly-automated) satellite lab. This will enable companies to produce the entire surimi - from start to finish - at the site.
Aaron: “So we can reduce logistic costs throughout the entire value chain.”
Though at the moment everything is manual, there is value in re-instating the desire to achieve more automated tasks in the production stage.
Aaron: “We want to reduce the manpower burden for the production facility, so it’s very important for us to leverage automation at that point in time.”
In terms of the cost, Fisheroo’s surimi is expected to be 3x the cost of conventional surimi in 2025 (when the startup is seeking to commercialise), however Aaron mentioned this is based on the notion of having a 100% cell-based fish and the usage of improved conventional technologies.
Aaron: “So could the cost be lower? Definitely.”
Some suggestions include putting in place strategies to bring cost down through hybrid products before moving to 100% cell based products. Though surimi product manufacturers have expressed excitement, there’s still a recognition that the industry is in its nascent stages.
Aaron: “Once we have a prototype I think we can have a deeper conversation with them about how to move things forward.”
We also asked Aaron, as a first-time entrepreneur, if there have been any surprises in his journey so far.
Aaron: “I think jumping from an 8 hour job to a 14 hour job was a huge one, because your entire day is work.”
Aaron: “Initially I thought it would be hard to adapt given such a big change, but as I progressed this 14 hours felt less of a job but more something fun.”
Aaron: “I’ll attribute it to the fact that it’s something I truly want to address, which is the issue behind the fishing industry, and so I actually wake up feeling fulfilled as opposed to feeling tired… I felt way more tired in my 8 hour job.”
But with every startup, we know that there are ups and downs in the journey. For Aaron, one of the biggest challenges came from learning how to wear both the hat of a scientist, as well as a CEO.
Aaron: “Being a scientist for quite some time, I had to reposition and put myself into the shoes of a CEO… and that wasn’t the easiest thing to do because you can no longer just think about science, but rather how each step you take will play into the next fundraise … or commercialisation.”
Aaron: “Thankfully I had the support of different mentors who helped me get through the transitional stage, and we’re still looking to learn each day but I guess it’s gotten better.”
Aaron’s advice for scientists who want to become entrepreneurs?
Aaron: “It’s really important to be mission-driven … because if you’re going to step into this industry you need to put in the hours and it’s not going to be similar to an 8 hour job, it’ll definitely be more.”
Aaron also mentioned the usefulness of online resources, in particular media outlets such as Green Queen, as well as the collaborative nature of the industry as a whole.
Fisheroo are aiming to have their first prototype developed in the next 12 months. To learn more you can head to their website, or connect with Aaron directly.