Certa Compact pumps provide reliable, predictable production for agritech company Better Origin

When Better Origin was trying to discover the best pump for transferring a viscous puree, the agritech company found a solution to its problems with the Certa Compact process pump from MasoSine.

Better Origin, which converts food waste into animal feed, wanted to remove the delays and additional costs in spare parts at its process line with reliable pumps to transfer pureed insect larvae, which it offers as a sustainable ingredient for pet food manufacturers.

Insect-based ingredients have a smaller environmental footprint and require less land, water, and energy compared to traditional proteins like chicken or beef. But manufacturing the sustainable ingredients for animal feed was not being done as efficiently as it could be. The texture of the puree caused multiple problems for Better Origin’s previously used progressive cavity pumps and resulted in additional costs for spare parts, which consumed more power at Better Origin’s facility in Cambridge, England.

Simon Haylor, Project Manager at Better Origin, said: “The progressive cavity pumps had stators, and every third production run we had to replace the stator.

“The previous pumps were unreliable with this product. We went through ceramic seals, stators, rotors, we might as well have had a spare pump to replace it every time it had a problem. Sometimes a production run could take six hours, where as other times it could be 18 or 20 hours because the progressive cavity pumps failed. You would have to run around trying to find a stator or seal to get it going again. We were going through spare parts so quickly.”

To make its production line more reliable, Better Origin began a trial with a Certa Compact 200 Sine pump in February 2024. Certa sinusoidal pumps have superior viscous pumping (1 cP to 8 million cP) with lower maintenance and minimal downtime due to their design of fewer components compared to other pump types. 

Haylor added: “We had a Certa Compact on trial for a few months and it was like chalk and cheese compared to the previous pumps we had. We have had no issues so far, it’s very simple to work with and reliable.”

More reliable production

After a successful trial, Better Origin purchased the two Certa Compact pumps and is now enjoying a more reliable and efficient production process.

Haylor said: “The Certa Compact has helped give us confidence in the reliability of our production line because before we had the Certa it was always let’s cross our fingers and hope we get a production run.

“We are definitely making cost savings in maintenance with the Certa Compact and we now have confidence in our process which we didn’t have with the previous pumps. We used to have a maintenance engineer on site until the production run ended because it was usually one of the two pumps failed.”

The maggot puree is supplied to Better Origin’s customers as a frozen block of animal feed, which is rich in protein and fats, and is then used to make dog and cat food. Better Origin claims it is helping to reduce emissions, mitigate food waste, and avoid deforestation with its technology and insect-based products which are designed to replace traditional ingredients such as soy in animal feed, fishmeal in aquaculture, meat in pet food, and chemical fertilisers.

The Certa Compact has a 30% reduced footprint compared to the existing Certa Sine® pump range. As well as the Certa Compact’s superior viscous handling, its simple maintenance are key benefits for Better Origin.

Harry Flannery, Sector Specialist (Process Industries – Food, Beverage & Sanitary Solutions), said: “When Better Origin got in touch with us to see if we had a solution, it was apparent that there were some pumping issues which needed to be overcome and certainly an interesting product/application. Reviewing and sizing their application was important to ensure we provided a suitable proof of concept trial pump for Simon to put through its paces, this was deemed a huge success. Our Certa Compact solution not only mitigates their breakdown worries but provides cost savings on energy, and maintenance can be carried out in minutes.”

MasoSine Process Pumps