Sustainable use of mitten crabs for aquaculture and cell culture
The project focuses on the sustainable use of biomass sources that have hitherto been underutilised, in particular invasive mitten crabs and by-products from crab processing. The aim is to develop methods for the targeted fractionation and processing of this biomass in order to make functional constituents such as proteins, peptides and other bioactive components accessible. Whilst the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) is responsible for the extraction and pre-processing of the crab biomass and is investigating the resulting fractions in feeding trials with shrimp in aquaculture, Kaesler Nutrition GmbH is focusing on the development and processing of suitable fractions.
These are intended to be used in the future as defined components in fish cell culture media, thereby enabling the replacement of conventional, animal-based additives. The project thus contributes to the establishment of resource-efficient and sustainable value chains in the field of cellular aquaculture.
About the project
As part of the InCraSus project – Invasive Crab Recycling for Sustainable Circular Economy, funded under the ‘Application-Oriented Environmental Technologies (AUF)’ programme by BIS Bremerhavener Gesellschaft für Investitionsförderung und Stadtentwicklung mbH and co-financed by the European Union (EFRE) and the State of Bremen, Kaesler Nutrition GmbH is working together with the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) to develop innovative utilisation strategies for marine biomass.
The project will be implemented at the Bremerhaven site between September 2025 and August 2027.
