The French group Innovafeed, which produces insect-based ingredients for human and animal nutrition, has announced the raising of 250 million euros to accelerate its industrial development in France and its expansion in the United States.
“Key industry for our planet”
The 250 million euros were raised by the Qatari sovereign fund Qatar Investment Authority with the arrival of two large investors at its side: ADM and Cargill, American giants of agricultural raw materials, with whom Innovafeed has collaborated for several years. Its economic contribution “testifies to its recognition of the unique and cutting-edge technology” developed by the young company, greets Inovafeed in a press release, confirming its change of scale since its creation in 2016.
They join the company’s historical financial partners such as Creadev, an investment fund of the Mulliez family (Auchan, Decathon, etc.), and Temasek, a sovereign wealth fund from Singapore. Some 38 million of this deposit also come from banks in the form of syndicated loans.
This new round of financing brings the total accumulated financing of Innovafeed to 450 million euros, confirming its “conviction that the insect industry is a key industry for our planet”. Consulted by AFP, the group, which now employs 350 people, did not want to communicate its assessment.
Construction of a production unit in the United States
France is one of the leaders in insect-based animal feed thanks to the companies Ynsect and Innovafeed. The latter says that “it already has commercial partnerships in volumes that represent more than one billion euros in the next 10 years.”
These funds should allow her to continue with the expansion of her “vertical farm” in Nesle (Somme), “the world’s largest insect protein production unit in operation” according to her, started in 2020 and with a capacity of 15,000 tons per year. In this factory, she breeds black soldier flies (Hermetia Illucens), which she transforms into proteins for aquaculture, into oil to feed pigs and poultry, or into “100% natural fertilizers.” They allow to reduce the importation of soy, which contributes greatly to deforestation.
Innovafeed will also accelerate its expansion in the United States “with the construction of a new production unit in Decatur (Illinois)” where it has installed a factory in the main ADM site. Its production capacity, which is already four times that of Nesle, will increase further. The acceleration of Innovafeed in the United States “is a decisive step for our change of scale” underlines Maye Walraven, appointed director for North America, and one more step in the international development of the group, which is also targeting the Asian market.
Source: BFM TV
