SUSTAINABLE GROWTH | Our approach to sustainability
ACCELERATING
INNOVATION
Adisseo’s ambition is to be a profitable and growing company that operates sustainably. To this end, research and innovation are essential to set the company apart and offer its clients innovative and sustainable solutions to help them grow.
NEWS
INNOVATION AND THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF ITS KEY SKILLS
A new research centre dedicated to aquaculture in Singapore
On 13 December 2019 Adisseo inaugurated its new research and development centre dedicated to aquaculture in Singapore.
ASA (Aquaculture Station by Adisseo) has assembled a team of aquaculture experts to focus on nutrition, aquatic animal health and innovative technologies relating to aquatic sciences.
Located within the Marine Aquaculture Centre (MAC) of the Singapore Food Agency (SFA), ASA will benefit from the SFA’s tropical aquaculture expertise and will also be able to access biological material available at the MAC to aid aquaculture research.
The new research centre’s mission is to meet the challenges of the fast-expanding aquaculture industry (fish and shrimp), by developing strong partnerships with academics the world over, especially in the Asia Pacific region.
DID YOU KNOW?
CONSUMPTION INDEX
Animals’ capacity to convert feed into live weight relies heavily on species and livestock management.
Source : IOP (Institut of Physics) publishing December 2017
of food to produce
1 kg of beef
of food to produce
1 kg of pork
of food to produce
1 kg of chicken
of food to produce
1 kg of fish
Innov’L@b at the heart of innovation
Innov’L@b is a collaborative network created by Adisseo which pools the skills required to identify, assess and integrate disruptive technologies. Its mission is to seek, select and develop proofs of concept (POC) for solutions, technologies and business models that will contribute to Adisseo’s sustainable growth.
The selection of POCs is made according to three key performance indicators (KPIs): improving animal welfare and lowering mortality rates, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and contributing to sustainable development, and guaranteeing reduced costs and the improved effectiveness of livestock production.
it encourages poultry to lay eggs in nests, avoiding laying on the ground, and limits financial losses.
it stimulates movement and improves well-being thanks to a scraper that allows the litter to be aerated.
• mycotoxin management
• new raw materials
• analytical methods
• biosafety
• the digitalization of breeding
In 2018 Adisseo launched, in collaboration with Seventure Partners, AVF, an institutional fund dedicated to animal food, nutrition, and health. In 2019 three investments were made including for the French Rennes-based start-up TIBOT Technologies, which develops robotic solutions for poultry farmers.
These partnerships have led to the creation of Spoutnic and Spoutnic NAV, two robots whose function is to ensure poultry welfare while improving the technical and economic performances of agricultural holdings and farmers’ working conditions.
Nowadays, Innov’L@b continues to seek new projects with start-ups and companies, offering innovative solutions to all aspects of the livestock industry.
INNOV’L@B IN 2019:
proofs of concept
(POCs) that have been selected and evaluated
projects of POC
are under development
preselected applications
investments
BANC II: Completion of a new logistics centre in Nanjing
The new logistics centre of the future BANC II plant in China was completed in May 2019 and is part of a global EUR 435 million project to build a new production platform that will supply 180,000 tons of Rhodimet® AT88 per year. Located close to Adisseo’s first Nanjing-based plant, this new methionine production platform will meet customer demands as well as the company’s sustainable growth objectives.
The new logistics centre includes several packaging lines, a warehouse, storage tanks and a bulk loading station. In its operational phase the logistics centre will be able to manage more than 360k tons per year of Methionine Rhodimet® AT88 and ensure its reliable and timely delivery to customers in China and internationally. Thanks to the excellent work and the cohesion of Adisseo’s teams in Nanjing, Shanghai (China) and Lyon (France), the construction process suffered no accidents or anomalies and the final cost ended up being below budget.
Technical exchanges with Electricité de France (EDF)
For Adisseo’s relations with local companies, and upon the request of EDF, the Roches-Roussillon site (France) welcomed 30 of EDF’s employees to share views on the management of the ventilation installations of the plant’s building.
In addition, five people from Adisseo’s team were able to visit EDF’s neighbouring power plant in Saint-Alban. These exchanges helped Adisseo understand EDF’s constraints and analyse possible solutions to help carry out EDF’s project.
Sustainable development at the heart of Adisseo’s 6th Catalysis Days
In December 2019 Adisseo’s 6th Catalysis Days took place in the offices of the Solvay Research & Development Centre in Lyon (France) which hosts our Cinachem research centre.
Organized over two days, this annual event aims to reinforce the diversity, quality and originality of Adisseo’s Catalysis Research and Innovation (R&I) approach. These meetings represent an excellent opportunity to discuss with Adisseo’s main academic partners the topic “Sustainable Development, a Challenge for Tomorrow’s Chemical Industry” and to show participants around the innovation centre.
This was also an opportunity to present Adisseo’s contribution to sustainable development and the creation of innovative products and services in the fields of animal food and the food industry. The event gathered together 30 people, consisting of PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and their supervisors, as well as the heads of Sustainable Development for Solvay and Adisseo.
Adisseo invests in the development of a portable nanometric device
In order to accelerate its development in terms of innovation, in addition to internal research, Adisseo now also relies on venture capital.
AVF, the investment fund created in 2018 by Seventure for which Adisseo is a key investor, carried out its first operation at the start of 2019.
Inspecto Solutions Ltd., the target company, is currently developing a portable nanometric device for the early detection of contaminants such as mycotoxins, directly on site. This device allows for better quality control of food by detecting the presence of mycotoxins in cereals destined for the animal industry. It potentially offers a dedicated solution, capable of real-time analysis and adapted to the detection of a series of contaminants according to the customer’s needs.
Unlike traditional methods, all stakeholders in the supply chain can easily use this device at any moment to gather results in real time and thus create value throughout the food production cycle.
Several other projects are being developed within AVF. These new projects will enable Adisseo to foster innovation in terms of developing new products and solutions.
Adisseo takes part in the Sommet de l’Élevage
For the first time Adisseo has taken part in the Sommet de l’Élevage which took place in Cournon d’Auvergne (63), France. This European fair for breeding professionals gathers 1500 exhibitors and attracts more than 95,000 visitors from all over the world – an opportunity for Adisseo to present its activities in the field of Ruminant Products to dairy farming professionals.
Closure of the Polar project
The Polar project represented an investment of more than EUR 110 million destined to increase liquid methionine production capacity in Europe. The aim was also to secure access to raw materials and to improve the reliability and competitiveness of our installations.
The 3 years of the operational construction phase ended with the activation of a new effluent treatment furnace and a new unloading station for methyl mercaptan (MSH) wagons on the Saint Clair du Rhône site (France). These two latter elements in the project represented 70,000 hours of work for some fifty people. No work accidents were reported.
On 19 December 2019 the closing day for the Polar project took place in Saint Clair du Rhône in the presence of François Mailhos, Adisseo’s Industrial Director, who also presented the outcome of the Polar project for the Burgos site (Spain).
of investment
for POLAR project
The aim of this day was to review the project and to share with the whole team the lessons learned as well as the positive points and areas of improvement. Many topics were addressed during the meeting, among which were the project’s organization, technical aspects, safety on site, purchasing and commissioning. The constant improvement approach will help capitalise on this feedback for future projects.
Adisseo holds its first booth at Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2019
For the first time Adisseo took part in the Asian-Pacific Aquaculture 2019 (APA), organized by the World Aquaculture Society, which was held in June in Chennai, India. The event included many rewarding professional meetings.
During the event, Adisseo’s booth featured the company’s latest aquaculture solutions for more than 200 aquaculture professionals and specialists. In collaboration with APA, Adisseo also organized a seminar which welcomed more than 90 clients and media from South-East Asia and India.
2019: Adisseo maintains its environmental investments
Our HSE operational budgets, which must integrate an increasing number of regulatory constraints (additional studies, rising taxes, etc.) are under control thanks to a deliberate HSE investment strategy of close to EUR 30 million per year over the last five years. Each industrial project is made good use of to improve and strengthen our management of safety and environmental risks and to reduce their impact in a strategy of sustainable growth.
As in 2018, 2019 saw a significant increase in the environmental share of investments, due to several major projects (50% of investments in 2018-2019 vs. the usual 25%). The construction of a new water treatment plant in Commentry (France) is under way and the construction of a new effluent treatment furnace in the production unit of a methionine intermediary in Saint Clair du Rhône (France) started mid-2019.
Adisseo obtains its first “sustainable development” loan
On 22 November 2019 in Hong Kong, Adisseo successfully secured with a group of 4 banks a loan of EUR 200 million over 5 years (under the holding BlueStar Adisseo Nutrition Group Ltd) with competitive financial conditions that will enable the group to finance its future development.
A sustainable development loan
successfully secured over 5 years
with a group of 4 banks
With an interest rate linked to the achievement of key objectives in terms of social responsibility, Adisseo can benefit from the development of this type of loan and thus use the loaned funds freely.
For that purpose, Adisseo has identified several KPIs, in line with its sustainable development strategy.
The company has set clear and easily measurable objectives based on areas of development such as safety at work, research and development efforts for bio-sourced processes, and the water and energy consumption of the production units.
Adisseo, a leading actor in the food chain, contributes to one of the major challenges for the planet: feeding the world’s ever-growing population sustainably. Adisseo has shown the increasing integration of sustainable development in all its activities, including its responsible financing strategy thanks to this innovative solution.
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