Innovafeed raises USD 59M to focus on commercial growth

“Over the past few years, we have built a unique industrial and technological platform at our Nesle site. I would like to warmly thank all the teams who took on this challenge. Sitting in the control room and seeing every production line running smoothly remains a particularly moving experience.”

Clément Ray (Photo: Innovafeed).

Scaling production volumes

Since its founding, Innovafeed has focused on producing local, sustainable, and high-performance alternatives to traditional feed ingredients.

Following its previous funding round in 2022, the company has reached full industrial maturity at the Nesle production unit. Over the past three years, the facility has produced more than 15,000 tons of protein and oil.

Innovafeed has scaled its production volumes tenfold while reducing manufacturing costs by a factor of seven. The company states its production capacity is now three times larger than that of its closest global competitor.

This expansion coincides with strong commercial traction, with revenues doubling annually driven by partnerships centered on its Hilucia product range.

Furthermore, Innovafeed claims its circular industrial symbiosis model delivers a 70-90% reduction in carbon emissions compared to conventional feed products.

“Innovafeed’s products represent one of the key solutions for more sustainable and high-performing aquaculture,” said Fabio Brambilla, Nutritionist at NaturAlleva, in a press release.

“After many years of studying the benefits of this raw material in the nutrition of sea bass, sea bream, and trout, we have made the decision to use these new ingredients on a very broad scale.”

Hilucia protein for aquafeed

Strategic consolidation and restructuring

Following an intense phase of R&D and industrial development that successfully cleared critical operational maturity milestones, Innovafeed is embarking on a new stage of its growth.

In this context, it is initiating a reorganization of its activities, specifically the reduction of zootechnical R&D activities and their integration from its historical Gouzeaucourt site into the Nesle facility.

A project involving the reduction of 60 positions is planned, two-thirds of which affect the Gouzeaucourt site.

This evolution of the organization will be carried out with dedicated support for the employees concerned, within the framework of close social dialogue with the Social and Economic Committee (CSE) of the company and the competent authorities.

“This new phase also comes with difficult decisions. We have announced a company reorganization, including workforce reductions affecting teams that have played a major role in making Innovafeed what it is today. These decisions are never taken lightly, but they are necessary to focus our resources and investments on the priorities that will determine our future,” said Mr Ray.

Future commercial objectives

Mr Ray explained that building a new industry is a long-term endeavor. It requires a clear vision, consistency, and the ability to persevere when reality proves more complex than expected.

In this context, he said, it is noteworthy that, at the very moment China is including the insect industry in its five-year plan, some policymakers in France are calling for a moratorium on public funding for the same sector.

The new financing operation will specifically enable Innovafeed to:

• 🐛 Accelerate the commercial development of the Hilucia ranges, particularly within the functional segments of aquaculture and pet food.
• 🐛 Invest in industrial equipment and processes in order to develop new offerings and applications.
• 🐛 Optimize the industrial asset base to increase the performance and capacities of the production lines.

Confident in the solidity of Innovafeed’s industrial model, its growth trajectory, and the potential of its ingredients to meet the long-term challenges of the agri-food sectors, the operation received very broad support from its historical shareholders, notably Creadev, QIA, Temasek, FFC, ABC Impact, and ADM, as well as its banking partners.

“More than ever, the support of our ecosystem is essential. A new industry cannot be built alone; it is built through strong and lasting partnerships. I would like to thank all of our partners who are supporting us through this new chapter,” said Mr Ray.

A more circular, resilient, and sustainable food system

Together, Mr Ray said we continue to build an industry that will become one of the pillars of a more circular, resilient, and sustainable food system.

“Since day one, we have carried a dual ambition: to demonstrate that we can produce high-performing, competitive, and sustainable ingredients for nutrition without relying on the intensive exploitation of marine resources; and that it is possible to build an innovative industrial project in France,” he explained.

“The successful scale-up of our industrial model marks a major milestone for Innovafeed today and opens up a new phase of commercial deployment. 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.”

As global food systems face mounting pressure to reduce dependence on marine resources, Innovafeed aims to position its proven model as a commercially viable, scalable solution to a growing ecological challenge.