Hi-Cap Formulations (Israel)'s Answer to Global Food Security

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Hi-Cap Formulations (Israel)  has developed an IP protected novel method for inexpensively cultivating single-cell microalgae at a projected cost that should be highly competitive with the fishmeal and fish oil required for the cultivation of farmed fish.  Fishmeal and fish oil are predominantly made from ocean fish, a resource being continually being depleted.  The totally novel technology is based on cultivating a highly concentrated suspension of algae in a very thin layer in floating closed plastic-film sleeves, with the air space above the algae containing a high concentration of carbon dioxide purified from industrial emissions.  A novel, energy efficient mixing system incorporates the carbon dioxide into the algal slurry as needed for photosynthesis and growth.  The growth system used all the fertilizer provided such that there are no emissions, as happens with conventional agriculture.

The concept has been verified in very small scale pilot structures (pictured).  Hi-Cap Formulations (Israel), with collaborators from the plastics industry, is looking for investors to facilitate constructing two increasingly larger scale sets of pilot structures prior to global commercialization.

Publications from Hi-Cap Formulations (Israel) Ltd principals with collaborators

·    Gressel, J. (2013) Marine algae for aquaculture: a coupled solution for protein sufficiency,  in D.J. Bennett and R.C. Jennings “Successful new genetics crops in emerging economies, Cambridge University Press pp. 233-245.

·    Gressel, J., .C.J.B. van der Vlugt and H.E.N.  Bergmans  (2013) Environmental risks of large scale cultivation of microalgae: Mitigation of spills.  Algal Research 2:286-298.

·   Gressel, J. and M. Granot (2013) Needs for special plastic films for large scale intensive plasticulture of algae for feed and fuel.  Plasticulture 10:57-65.

·     Gressel, J., C.J.B. van der Vlugt and H.E.N. Bergmans, (2014) Cultivated microalgae spills: hard to predict/easier to mitigate risks.  Trends in Biotechnology 32:65-69.

·     Gressel, J. and M. Granot (2018) Novel photobioreactor for enclosed horizontal cultivation of microalgae.  US Patent 9,938,492 – applied 2012. (also Australian Patent 2013336244; Mexican Patent 362771, Malaysian 171678, and Brazilian - BR 11 2105 008979-8)   

·         Schlesinger, A., D. Eisenstadt, A. Bar-Gil, H. Carmely, S. Einbinder, and J. Gressel (2012) Inexpensive non-toxic flocculation of microalgae contradicts theories; overcoming a major hurdle to bulk algal production. Biotechnology Advances 30:1023-1030.