ANN ARBOR — Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc. (OTCQB: KBLB), the developer of genetically engineered silkworms that produce silk with the strength of spiderweb fibers, announced that several farming cooperatives in Quang Nam Province, Vietnam, have begun planting mulberry trees for production of its “spider silk.”
Mulberry leaves are the sole diet of silkworms, whose cocoon fibers are the raw material of silk fabric. Silkworms are voracious eaters, consuming more than 100 kilograms of mulberry leaves for every kilogram of finished silk produced. Kraig’s Vietnamese operation will see the planting of nearly 6,200 acres of mulberry under the agreements with Kraig subsidiary, Prodigy Textiles, which will make the “spider silk” at a nearby factory.
“Planting these mulberry fields means that we now able to support rearing our hybrid silkworms at Prodigy Textiles,” said Jon Rice, Kraig COO. “Access to large quantities of fresh mulberry is a core piece of our production growth strategy and was a key element of our decision to select Vietnam for commercializing our spider silk technology. The local farming cooperatives have the existing capacity to meet Prodigy’s mulberry needs over the coming months. These additional plantings provide us with the confidence that we will be able to maitain our scale up plans for years to come, while also providing these farmers with sustaining and reliable income.”
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