{"href":"http://player.captivate.fm/services/oembed?url=http%3A%2F%2Fplayer.captivate.fm%2Fepisode%2F2b7ef6af-2476-4e74-ba51-caaaa0a46d08","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Captivate.FM","provider_url":"https://www.captivate.fm","width":600,"height":200,"type":"rich","html":"","title":"S1E8: 008 Virginia Emery - Frass Happens: Dissecting Insect Farming","description":"Virginia Emery is an entrepreneur with a passion for insects and the founder and CEO of Beta Hatch, a company that grows insects as sustainable protein for animal feed. Virginia\u2019s current mission is the save the world by breeding a bug that tastes like bacon. Join Harry Duran, host of Vertical Farming Podcast, as he and Virginia discuss the fascinating world of insect farming, its impact on the vertical farming industry and the importance of promoting diversity in this ever-growing market.\r\n\r\nSpecial thanks to our Season 1 Sponsor\r\n\r\nIGS \u2013 https://intelligentgrowthsolutions.com/ \r\n\r\nKey Takeaways\r\n\r\n00:01 \u2013 Virginia expounds on her background as an Insect Entrepreneur, speaks to the many \u2018bug banquets\u2019 she\u2019s attended and shares her passion for changing the world\r\n\r\n06:12 \u2013 Virginia speaks to how she educated herself about the indoor agriculture industry, the work she does with Beta Hatch and surprises she learned along the way\r\n\r\n13:37 \u2013 Other vertical farming business models that inspired Virginia during the early stages of Beta Hatch\r\n\r\n16:16 \u2013 Virginia breaks down the supply chain aspect of Beta Hatch and the impact of robotics technology on this industry\r\n\r\n24:55 \u2013 How Virginia has grown and evolved as a business owner and entrepreneur\r\n\r\n30:16 \u2013 Virginia shares her thoughts on opportunities for women and minorities in the AgTech industry and can be done to promote diversity\r\n\r\n40:43 \u2013 The decision to seek out funding through a third party investor and a hard question Virginia has had to ask herself and answer recently\r\n\r\n47:34 \u2013 Harry thanks Virginia for joining the show and let\u2019s listeners know where they can follow and connect with Virginia and Beta Hatch\r\n\r\nTweetables:\r\n\r\n\u201cIf you can identify what your passion is and you can use that to fuel your career, that means that work is not \u2018work\u2019 in a sense of something you\u2019re not enjoying or something that\u2019s burdensome but rather something that you feel passionate about.\u201d (05:50)\r\n\r\n\u201cThe U.S. is a net exported of feed \u2013 because we produce a lot of soy \u2013 but we\u2019re a net importer of aqua culture, seafood and aqua feed products. So, there\u2019s some interesting geographical components to the food system that, again, most people are not realizing when they go to the grocery store and get their food.\u201d (13:09) \r\n\r\n\u201cFrass is your word of the day. Frass is insect manure, so bug poop. We have a saying at Beta Hatch that \u2018Frass Happens.\u2019\u201d (17:18)\r\n\r\n\u201cAs an entrepreneur that\u2019s one of the most exciting things I think about having a business is there\u2019s always something new to learn. And that\u2019s something that we really value at our company is we really work to hire lifelong learners.\u201d (26:03)\r\n\r\n\u201cI\u2019ve always tried to pursue my interests with a real drive, and I think that naturally being an entrepreneur fits really well with that.\u201d (30:07)\r\n\r\n\u201cI think it\u2019s the responsibility of anyone who\u2019s working in an organization that\u2019s not very diverse to really think about why that is.\u201d (33:09)\r\n\r\n\u201cWhat I\u2019ve come to realize is that investors and the people that are helping to scale this industry, they invest in people. So I think that it\u2019s important that you are authentic with people and that you\u2019re really using that to motivate and drive what you do.\u201d (46:22)\r\n\r\nLinks Mentioned:\r\n\r\nVirginia\u2019s LinkedIn\r\n\r\nBeta Hatch Website\r\n\r\nIntelligent Growth Solutions\r\n\r\nWebsite | Twitter | YouTube\r\n\r\nSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/f7eaabba-0283-4e0a-8973-6282fc8443a2/image.jpg"}