Work begins after Kraig ties up with cooperatives

03 Aug '18

2 min read

Courtesy: Kraig Biocraft

Work on planting mulberry has begun as part of the collaborative agreement signed between Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, leading developer of spider silk based fibres, and several farming cooperatives in Quang Nam Province, Vietnam. Mulberry is the key input for the company’s newly formed subsidiary, Prodigy Textiles and its proprietary hybrid silkworms.

Mulberry is also key to the commercialisation of the company’s recombinant spider silk materials.

Silkworms are voracious eaters, consuming more than 100 kilograms of mulberry leaves for every kilogram of finished silk produced. For this reason, transportation logistics and local sourcing of mulberry are core to the company’s strategic plan. Under these agreements the company expects that as many as 2,500 hectares of mulberry will be planted near the company’s new factory, supporting Prodigy Textiles spider silk production for several years to come.

“Planting these mulberry fields means that we now able to support rearing our hybrid silkworms at Prodigy Textiles,” said Jon Rice, COO. “Access to large quantities of fresh mulberry is a core piece of our production growth strategy and was a key element of our decision to select Vietnam for commercialising our spider silk technology. The local farming cooperatives have the existing capacity to meet Prodigy’s mulberry needs over the coming months. These additional plantings provide us with the confidence that we will be able to maitain our scale up plans for years to come, while also providing these farmers with sustaining and reliable income.” (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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