Spanish agribusiness company Elian is expanding its Barcelona soy processing plant. The move would take it beyond conventional soybean meal into higher-value protein ingredients for the European aquafeed market.
The Spanish Development Financing Company COFIDES is investing EUR 40 million in Elian’s share capital. That makes it a minority shareholder. The money comes through the Co-investment Fund (FOCO), which COFIDES manages. Elian is part of Viserion International, which is also a FOCO co-investor. Cumulative investment in the project at the Port of Barcelona has passed EUR 300 million since 2021.
Elian already supplies soybean meal for aquafeed formulations. Fish such as European seabass are among the species served. The expansion adds ultra-high-protein (UHP) soybean meal, soy protein concentrates (SPC) and lecithin. The company told Aquafeed.com that SPC will target premium markets such as salmon.
Elian bought a soybean crushing plant in 2024. It announced the expansion at the end of 2025. Completion is scheduled for early 2028. The site will cover 90,000 square meters. It will add more than 100,000 tonnes of yearly capacity for protein derivatives. Current capacity is 770,000 tonnes.
Elian says the plant is one of three integrated facilities of its kind in Europe. It also calls it the first agro-industrial plant with an end-to-end hydrocarbon-free process.
The new range will be 100% non-GMO. It will use European sourcing and a hexane-free process. CEO Andrés Martín said COFIDES’ entry gives the plant institutional backing. He said it supports Europe’s plant-based protein sovereignty.
This year, Elian is targeting about 3,000 hectares of non-GMO soy in Catalonia and Aragon. The project involves seed suppliers, farmers, universities and research institutions. They are working on varietal selection and agronomic performance.
The post COFIDES backs Elian’s push into higher-value soy for aquafeed appeared first on World Bio Market Insights.
- Source: https://worldbiomarketinsights.com/cofides-backs-elians-push-into-higher-value-soy-for-aquafeed/
