Aquatech pioneer Umitron closes S$11.2mil investment to lead sustainable development of aquaculture through technology

26-Jun-2018 - Singapore

UMITRON PTE. LTD. announced that it had raised $11.2 million SGD on 8th of June as the first enterprise equity finance. The financing is a co-investment by Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, D4V(Design for Ventures) participated by IDEO, and angel investors.
It would be the highest raising as early-stage investments in aquatech industry ever (until today, June 2018). Umitron will strengthen its existing services and R&D through this finance.

Increase in world protein demand*
The United Nations the world’s population Prospects forecast that population grows in 9.7billion in 2050. Along with the growth of population, the world is facing increasing demand for protein which is one of the most important nutrients constituting, biggest shares for a human body except for water as much as the lipids. Especially in Asia, people are becoming more keen on healthy diet, and the demand for animal protein in the entire food continues to expand.
* United Nations World Population Prospects, the 2010 Revision

Aquaculture gains global attention
Demand for protein increases, but the area of cultivated land food production and the yield per unit area are limited. Also, the expansion of agriculture, factory and city have led to the usage of more freshwater resources. Land animals such as cattle, pigs, and chickens have been farmed by human hands for thousands of years, while marine fish are still being supplied by capturing. For those reasons, marine-aquaculture industry is growing rapidly now.

Solve aquaculture issues with technology
The biggest challenge faced by the growing aquaculture industry is optimization of feeding. The aquaculture feeding cost shares more than 50% of total production one. In addition, overfeeding beyond the amount required for fish appetite causes water problem such as eutrophication of the ocean and red tide. Umitron provides technology to optimize feeding in aquaculture and reduce environmental risk.

https://www.yumda.com/en/news/1155994/aquatech-pioneer-umitron-closes-s-11-2mil-investment-to-lead-sustainable-development-of-aquaculture-through-technology.html