Innovafeed, a French producer of insect-based ingredients for animal nutrition, pet food and aquaculture, has raised €51 million (US$59 million) to fund a new phase focused on commercial development, the company said.
The funding round, backed largely by existing financial partners, follows Innovafeed's previous raise in 2022. The company said it has completed its industrialization phase and is reorganizing its activities around its Nesle production site, shifting its focus to commercial growth of its product ranges.
Clement Ray, CEOInnovafeed
Hermetia illucens production
Innovafeed produces ingredients from Hermetia illucens, or black soldier fly. The company said its Nesle unit has produced more than 15,000 tons of protein and oil over three years, with production volumes increasing tenfold and production costs falling to one-seventh of their previous level.
Innovafeed said its production scale is three times that of the sector's second-largest producer and that revenues have doubled annually. The company said its products, sold under the Hilucia range, deliver a 70% to 90% reduction in carbon emissions compared with conventional products.
The new financing will allow Innovafeed to accelerate commercial development of its Hilucia ranges in aquaculture and pet food, invest in industrial equipment and processes to develop new applications, and optimize its production lines, the company said.
"The successful scale-up of our industrial model marks a major milestone for Innovafeed today and opens up a new phase of commercial deployment," Ray said. "Innovafeed is now focusing its efforts on accelerating the development of value chains for its ingredients, capturing the full value of their multiple functional properties improving animal health and growth, which have been validated and proven for 10 years now."
The round drew support from existing shareholders including Creadev, QIA, Temasek, FFC, ABC Impact and ADM, along with the company's banking partners.
"The pet food market continues to evolve toward ingredients that deliver both sustainability and functional benefits," said Detmar Barneveld, commercial manager at Vobra Special Petfoods. "Innovafeed's latest funding round provides a strong platform to accelerate innovation and create new opportunities across the value chain."
Innovafeed's ingredients form the core of Réglo's hypoallergenic dog food recipes, noted Basile Laigre, CEO and cofounder of Réglo. "The performance and stability of Innovafeed's products are essential to sustain our strong growth," he said.
Reorganization, workforce reduction
Innovafeed said it will cut 60 positions as part of the reorganization, reducing zootechnical research and development activities and consolidating them from its Gouzeaucourt site into the Nesle facility. Two-thirds of the affected positions are at Gouzeaucourt.
"We must adapt our organization to this new phase by reducing industrial and zootechnical R&D activities, while continuing to invest alongside our customers to demonstrate functionalities and performance of our products," said Ray.
The company said the changes would be carried out with support for affected employees and through dialogue with its Social and Economic Committee and the relevant authorities.
"The talents who made up our R&D and industrial teams enabled us to reach unprecedented milestones in the sector," Ray said. "While we must take demanding measures to adjust our organization to this new phase, we are deeply committed to recognizing the dedication of our teams over the past years and to implementing this transformation plan responsibly, in full respect of social dialogue and in close connection with local authorities."
