Innovafeed raises $250 million in a Series D funding

This round was led by Qatar Investment Authority and existing investors Creadev and Temasek, in addition to new strategic and financial investors, such as ADM and Cargill.

Co-founder and CEO Clément Ray said the new fundraising confirms that the insect industry “is a key solution for our planet’s food production needs.”

The raised capital will be used to increase production capacity and expand its insect protein production site in the north of France. The site, located in Nesle, has a capacity of 15,000 tons of insect protein.

The French insect startup is also eyeing international expansion in the US by constructing a new plant in partnership with ADM in Decatur (Illinois). At the same time, Innovafeed said it is preparing a global roll-out, including development in Asia.

Management changes

Innovafeed said they secured commercial partnerships for volumes representing more than €1 billion over the next decade.

In addition to the funding, the company announced that Yves Amsellem is the new Chief Operating Officer (COO). He has more than 30 years of experience in end-to-end supply chain management.

Innovafeed also appointed Maye Walraven as the new General Manager for North America. Walraven has served as Vice President of Business Development since 2017. “Our expansion in the United States is a critical step for our scale-up. It will enable us to access a deep source of feedstock and significantly increase our production capacity,” she said.