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The French insect protein company announced their total fundraising accumulated €250 million, with investors from Creadev, Temasek, ADM and Cargill, Future French Champions, ABC impact IDIA Capital investissement and Grow Forward.
Innovafeed is a start-up biotechnology company that specialises in producing the insect Hermetia Illucens fly for animal and plant nutrition to create a healthier, more sustainable food system (as an alternative to fishmeal and vegetable oils used in animal feed).
The company aims to leave a positive impact on the environment and maintain a low carbon impact, doing so through various methods such as reducing energy consumption with a symbiotic production model, which approximately saves more than 10,000 households’ worth of energy annually. They also avoid the consumption of fossil fuels for production by using the waste energy of their industrial partners to power production sites.
Innovafeed recently announced the creation of an ‘Impact committee’, which will centre sustainable development and social impact in their business model. The Committee will consist of internal and external members, who will help define and support Innovafeed’s strategy over the next three years.
Innovafeed will use the money raised to increase its production capacity by expanding the Nesle vertical insect farm site in France, as well as investing in technology to help formulate high-performance ingredients. Additionally, there are now plans to expand internationally, by collaborating with agribusiness leaders ADM and Cargill in Illinois to construct a new production plant.
There have also been recent developments within the company itself, introducing a New Chief Operating Officer, Yves Amsellem as well as a new general manager for North America, Maye Walraven (previously Innovafeed’s vice president of business development).
The Series D fundraiser, led by Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) will accelerate the insect protein industry, as the cumulative financing raised now stands at €450 million.
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