# FeedKind (Chongqing plant) by Calysta Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/agriculture/feedkind Frontier: [Agriculture](https://technooptimist.io/agriculture.md) · Field: Fermented proteins · Company: [Calysta](https://technooptimist.io/companies/calysta.md) Stage: Pilot (3 of 5: Research → Proto → Pilot → Deploy → Scaling) Updated: last update 2026-07-04, facts checked 2026-10-11 Goal: Make feed protein from natural gas instead of fishmeal or soy. Fish farming needs ever more protein, and a fermenter fed on methane uses no farmland, little water and no wild fish. Status: Chongqing plant halted for upgrades; JV partner Adisseo stopped funding in July 2026. Next milestone: Fund upgrades and restart production ## Milestones | Status | Milestone | Date | Slip | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Done | FDA GRAS: up to 18% of salmonid feed | Feb 2023 | | | Done | Chongqing plant switched on (20,000 t/yr) | Oct 2022 | | | Done | China grants full approval for fish and shrimp feed | Jan 2024 | | | Done | First dog food with FeedKind Pet launched (Europe) | 27 Feb 2025 | | | Done | Chongqing production suspended for technical upgrades | 2025 | | | Current | Fund upgrades and restart production | | | ## Most important updates - **4 Jul 2026**: Adisseo ends financial support for Calysseo as the FeedKind plant in Chongqing stays suspended. Bluestar Adisseo said it will give no more financial help to Calysseo, its 50:50 joint venture with Calysta. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/adisseo-ends-financial-support-for-calysseo-as-the-feedkind-plant-in-c549e92e.md) · [original source](https://aquaasiapac.com/2026/07/04/adisseo-ends-financial-support-to-calysseo-jv-producing-feedkind/)) - **1 Jul 2026**: Calysta names Berend Jan Kingma CEO as it seeks funding to restart FeedKind production. Berend Jan Kingma became Calysta's CEO, with co-founder Alan Shaw moving to non-executive chairman. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/calysta-names-berend-jan-kingma-ceo-as-it-seeks-funding-to-restart-2f21a1b3.md) · [original source](https://www.feedbusinessmea.com/2026/07/29/calysta-appoints-new-ceo-as-feedkind-producer-seeks-funding-to-scale-single-cell-protein-production/)) - **27 Feb 2025**: Marsapet launches MicroBell, the first dog food made with FeedKind Pet protein. German pet-food maker Marsapet launched MicroBell, a vegan, grain-free dry dog food whose main ingredients include FeedKind Pet protein, in European stores and online. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/marsapet-launches-microbell-the-first-dog-food-made-with-feedkind-pet-04b31e4f.md) · [original source](https://calysta.com/marsapet-launches-first-dog-food-featuring-feedkind-pet-protein/)) - **31 Jan 2024**: China fully approves Calysta's methane-based FeedKind protein for fish and shrimp feed. China's agriculture ministry granted FeedKind full approval for fish and shrimp feeds after an extensive evaluation, opening the world's largest aquafeed market to the protein made by Calysseo in Chongqing. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/china-fully-approves-calysta-s-methane-based-feedkind-protein-for-fish-1e7d8c61.md) · [original source](https://www.fishfarmingexpert.com/calysta-china-feed/china-gives-green-light-for-protein-from-gas-ingredient-in-aquafeed/1659522)) - **21 Oct 2022**: Calysseo switches on the first industrial-scale FeedKind plant in Chongqing, China. Calysseo, the Adisseo–Calysta joint venture, started up its Chongqing plant, designed to make 20,000 tonnes of FeedKind protein a year in a patented U-loop fermenter. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/calysseo-switches-on-the-first-industrial-scale-feedkind-plant-in-513ae230.md) · [original source](https://calysta.com/new-era-of-food-security-beckons-as-worlds-first-industrial-scale-alternative-protein-facility-switches-on/)) ## Current obstacles - **Plant stopped, funding gap**: Calysseo lacks working capital to finish upgrades; the Chongqing plant has been idle and Adisseo will not lend more. - **Downstream processing**: Calysta says its first priority is debottlenecking the step that separates and dries the cells. ## Physics limits - **Methane and oxygen barely dissolve in water**: Bacteria can only eat gas that has dissolved, and both gases are poorly soluble. Pumping and mixing hard enough costs energy and caps how fast a reactor of a given size can grow protein. - **Growth makes heat**: Turning methane into cells releases a lot of heat, which must be removed continuously; cooling becomes a large part of plant cost as reactors get bigger. ## How it works ### Feed: Methane, oxygen and minerals A naturally occurring bacterium is given methane gas as its carbon source, plus oxygen and nutrients, in a closed fermenter. ### Grow: Gas pumped round a U-loop The broth circulates through a U-shaped loop reactor so the gases dissolve quickly and the bacteria keep multiplying year-round. ### Dry: Cells become protein meal Cells are separated from the broth and dried into a meal; this downstream step is the plant's current bottleneck. ### Use: Fish, shrimp and pet food FeedKind replaces fishmeal or soy in aquafeed; it has been validated in shrimp, seabass and salmon trials. ## Spec sheet | Spec | FeedKind (Chongqing plant) | Provenance | | --- | --- | --- | | Chongqing design capacity | 20,000 t a year | reported | | Feedstock | Methane (natural gas) | reported | | Reactor | Patented U-loop fermenter | reported | | Allowed in salmon feed (FDA) | Up to 18% of the diet | reported | | Calysseo revenue 2025 | US$0.71M (net loss US$15.5M) | reported | | JV total investment | US$80M | reported | Provenance: reported = stated by the company; estimated = our estimate; sample = a sample figure. ## About Calysta San Mateo company that grows bacteria on methane gas and dries them into FeedKind, a protein for fish, shrimp and pet food. Its joint-venture plant in Chongqing, China, is halted for upgrades. - Calysseo, a 50:50 JV with Adisseo, built a 20,000 t/yr FeedKind plant in Chongqing (2022). - Plant halted for upgrades; Adisseo stopped funding the JV in July 2026. - New CEO Berend Jan Kingma from July 2026; co-founder Alan Shaw is chairman. - Headquarters: US - Status: private - Website: https://calysta.com - People: Berend Jan Kingma (CEO (from July 2026)); Alan Shaw (Co-founder, non-executive chairman) - Partners, customers, investors: Adisseo (partner); BP (investor); Marsapet (customer) Company page: https://technooptimist.io/companies/calysta.md ## Related programs Everything in Agriculture: https://technooptimist.io/agriculture.md --- The Techno Optimist tracks every frontier of technology, program by program: https://technooptimist.io/ (a Markdown version of any page: add .md to its URL; site map for agents: https://technooptimist.io/llms.txt). 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