New Insect-based Dog Food Aims to Have a Real Impact’ on the Food Industry
Nan Zhang
06/05/24
(Image Credit: M Burke/ Unsplash)
Tuggs is one of the first dog food companies in the UK to manufacture fresh dog food, and is rumoured to be the first in Europe to do so using insects.
“From a nutritional standpoint it was important to find a manufacturing process that was very gentle to preserve the nutrients. From a sustainability point of view, adding insects was the idea from the start” Tuggs founder Harry Bremner tells Blether.
Tuggs provides fresh, insect-based dog food which reduces the dependence on livestock without compromising nutritional value. Pet owners are attracted by the nutritional benefits of a fresh dog food diet as well as the company’s sustainability pledge. Tuggs has shipped over 200,000 meals to dogs across the UK since its launch at the end of 2022.
Bremner says, “we're pioneering the use of alternative proteins in fresh dog food and that itself is very exciting.”
Edible Insects
Insects would be an unusual choice of food for many people, but there is an increasing drive to use them as an alternative source of meat protein.
(Image Credit: Julia Filirovska/Pexel)
A 2013 report by the United Nations describes insects as “the future of food” which can help with rising meat costs and climate concerns as the global population grows. The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation) states that insects are a very nutritious and healthy food source with high fat, protein, vitamin, fibre and mineral content.
The idea for Tuggs came from Bremner’s dissertation for his Master’s degree in Tech Entrepreneurship at UCL. After the European Commission (EU) passed regulation to allow insects to be used for aquafeed in 2017, he became very interested in this field and started researching it.
“I found it curious that we eat crustaceans and that lobsters are a delicacy, but in the West we don’t eat insects. I started studying the industry and ended up writing my Master’s thesis on the topic” Bremner recalled.
Bremner submitted a dissertation discussing the viability of an insect-based brand, which his advisor found impressive and decided to invest in.
(Harry Bremner, Image Credit: Sourced)
A Promising Industry
The environmental benefits of rearing insects for food make Bremner more excited by the prospect of Tuggs.
“I think Tuggs has a unique opportunity to change consumer habits and have a real impact, not just on the dog food industry, but on the wider food industry,” Bremner says.
Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found that dry food sourced from meat contributed up to 2.9% of agriculture’s CO2 emissions in 2020.
In 2021, the EU approved feeding insect protein to chickens and pigs, a practice already allowed for aquafeed. This has paved the way to new feed markets for insect producers. To rein in emissions, the EU is further easing regulations and subsidising makers of insect-derived food.
The demand for insect protein, mainly as an animal feed and pet food ingredient, could reach half a million metric tons by 2030, according to a Rabobank report. And these prospects for growth have drawn global venture capitalists to the fledgling industry.
Bremner talks about the next steps for Tuggs, “The key thing that we're looking at is scaling up our manufacturing and working on a range of treats. We want to continue to grow quickly.”
Advice for Budding Entrepreneurs
Bremner has been running his own businesses since the age of 18. In addition to Tuggs, he is still running a business which provides a service of collecting and storing items over the summer for students across Scotland. Bremner founded this business in his first year at the University of St. Andrews.
When asked advice for budding entrepreneurs, Bremner answers:
“I always come back to the one of my favourite quotes, which is attributed to Benjamin Franklin that ‘Well done is better than well said’. And I think that resonates with me because for people who want to do something or have the ambition to create their own business, my biggest advice would be to get on with it and just start by doing something.”
If you are interested in reading more about Tuggs, please check out the Tuggs website.