Decameal
Decameal is a Danish startup that raised a seed round in 2026 to transform invasive crabs into sustainable ingredients for the feed industry. Its patent-pending process converts an environmental problem into a new protein and lipid supply chain for aquaculture and animal farming.
Europe's most interesting startup stories. Every week.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Podcast Episode
🎙️ Deep Dive
Daily News — May 1, 2026
Listen to the episodeAbout Decameal
Decameal is a Danish startup backed by Delphinus VC, Rockstart and Aller Aqua that has developed a technology to transform invasive crabs — a growing environmental problem in European coastal systems — into sustainable protein and lipid ingredients for the feed industry. The patent-pending process creates a circular supply chain that removes invasive species from ecosystems while producing raw materials for aquaculture and animal farming. Decameal's thesis is that the solution to an ecological problem can become the foundation of a new industrial supply chain, potentially replicable across geographies where invasive species represent a cost to the local ecosystem.
The Story
Founded in 2022 in Grindsted, Denmark, by Happylan Natkunarajah and Leander Hessner (CEO), with Mikkel Kongsfelt joining as co-founder during the first funding round. The founding thesis is straightforward: invasive crabs proliferating in Danish coastal waters are both a concrete ecological problem and a completely untapped source of high-value protein raw materials. Producing protein from 100,000 tons of crabs can reduce CO₂ emissions from the Danish agricultural sector by over 65,000 tons compared to imported Brazilian soy.
How Decameal works
Business Model
Harvesting invasive crabs from Danish coastal waters — restoring marine ecosystems in the process — and transforming them into feed industry ingredients: proteins for organic laying hens, concentrates for pet food and aquaculture, and shell extracts (chitin and astaxanthin) for industrial and nutritional applications. The process is patent-pending and potentially replicable in any region with invasive crab species.
Revenue Model
Sale of protein and lipid ingredients derived from invasive crabs to feed manufacturers for aquaculture, organic animal farming and pet food.
Market & Clients
Key Customers
It targets producers of aquaculture and livestock feed who are looking for sustainable protein ingredients as alternatives to traditional fish meal.
Similar Startups
Perplant
Danish AgTech startup mounting plug-and-play AI sensors on tractors to monitor crops in real time and spray only where needed.
Read AnalysisSuFu ApS
SuFu ApS develops innovative solutions for sustainable mobility and transportation.
Read AnalysisAgreena
Agreena is a startup founded in 2019 in Copenhagen operating in sustainable agriculture. It runs Europe's largest soil carbon sequestration program, helping farmers adopt regenerative farming practices and monetize carbon credits. It has raised €46M in a Series B round to expand its carbon credit marketplace.
Read Analysis