Kraig Labs nails spider silk production trial.

Kraig Biocraft Laboratories (KBLB) announced a breakthrough in their spring production trials for recombinant spider silk. They successfully completed the rearing of the first generation of their new BAM-1 parental strains, exceeding expectations for cocoon production.

Independent sericulture expert Nirmal Kumar oversaw the trials. All four production batches achieved excellent growth rates and nearly perfect cocooning. Kumar is impressed by the robustness of the BAM-1 lines and expects a successful production scale-up.

This achievement demonstrates the BAM-1 lines' suitability for large-scale production. Kraig Labs will collect moths from the cocoons to breed the next generation and conclude the parental line trial.

Testing throughout the rearing cycle confirmed the BAM-1 lines are the strongest KBLB has ever produced. The company and its consultants are now prepared to accelerate production towards metric-ton levels.  

CEO Kim Thompson said the BAM-1 hybrids have exceeded expectations and the company is in an entirely new ball game now.

The trials are 85 per cent complete, and all batches have overcome anticipated challenges. KBLB's two-year program to acclimate the silkworms to the production environment appears successful.