ViAqua Therapeutics Secures $8.25 Million in Funding for Shellfish Disease Management

ViAqua Therapeutics, an Israel-based biotechnology startup specializing in aquaculture health, secured an $8.25 million funding round. The round was led by S2G Ventures with participation from Rabo Ventures, The Trendlines Group, Agriline, Nutreco, I-Lab Angels, and Circle Investments. The investment aims to accelerate the company's first product to market, further R&D efforts, and validate the scalability of its RNA-based solutions.

Aquaculture is increasingly vital for food security and sustainability, but it faces a significant challenge: disease management. According to Kontali's analysis, diseases have an economic impact of over $8.5 billion on the shrimp industry alone. ViAqua aims to tackle this issue by developing an oral delivery platform for RNA-based solutions designed to enhance disease resistance in marine species.

The method of oral delivery eliminates the need for individual vaccination of shrimp, significantly reducing operational costs and improving disease management outcomes.

Shrimp are particularly susceptible to diseases like the White Spot Virus (WSSV), which causes an annual loss of around $3 billion and a 15% reduction in global shrimp production. And diseases in shrimp farming can lead to mortality rates of up to 50%, causing 25-30% of shrimp farms to fail annually. ViAqua's first product is a feed supplement designed to enhance shrimp's resistance to viral infections, specifically targeting WSSV. Their innovation aims to stabilize production for farmers and even increase production without elevating disease risks.

The startup plans to begin production in India in early 2024 and has entered into a joint development and marketing agreement with Skretting, a Nutreco company.

ViAqua Therapeutics' last funding round was in 2021 when it raised $4.3 million. The startup was founded in 2014 by Shai Ufaz and Shai Einbinder.