Insect Protein Startup Volare Raises $8.6M to Fuel European Expansion

Jan de Vries · 2026-10-26

Volare, a Finnish deep-tech company that turns food-industry side streams into high-quality insect protein, just hit a major milestone. It inaugurated its first industrial-scale facility, Volare 01, in Pori, Finland, and raised €7.1 million (about $8.6 million) in fresh funding. The round came from Springvest, with backing from both new and existing investors, including venture capital firm Maki.vc. ### From Lab to Industrial Scale Founded in 2021 by Tuure Parviainen, Matti Tähtinen, and Jarna Hyvönen as a spin-off from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Volare actually began working on its technology back in 2014. The company has successfully brought its process from lab to industrial production, relying on the black soldier fly—described by the company as nature’s own bioreactor. The insect is fed food-industry side streams and, within roughly a week of active growth, converts them into protein and oil. Volare has built a proprietary, highly automated production process that covers the full chain, from rearing larvae to finished ingredients. The result? A facility that generates no process wastewater, runs entirely on non-fossil fuel energy, and operates with just four people per shift. ### Inside Volare 01 Volare 01, the new 107,639-square-foot plant, targets annual production of up to 5,000 tonnes (about 5,511 tons) of insect protein and 2,000 tonnes (about 2,205 tons) of insect oil. It converts food-industry side streams into high-value ingredients for aquafeed, pet food, and poultry feed markets. Instead of building from scratch, the company built the facility inside a former newspaper printing hall—an approach that reduces construction requirements and costs. The facility was delivered on schedule and within its €15 million (about $18.2 million) budget. Volare 01 represents a thousandfold expansion from the company’s demonstration plant, yet relies on the same production process that has been commercially validated over four years. Compared with other insect-based producers, Volare claims its factory requires four to ten times less capital expenditure, around 50% fewer full-time employees, and 30% less energy for end-product processing. Its protein meal delivers over 90% digestibility. A significant share of Volare 01’s production capacity has already been sold, with offtake agreements in place with Skretting, one of the world’s largest aqua feed companies and a leading global chemical company. Volare says its protein has been commercially used since 2022, featuring in insect-based dog treats developed with Alvar Pet, cat food under Dagsmark’s (Vafo Group brand), and rainbow trout feed through a collaboration with Alltech Fennoaqua. ### What’s Next for Volare The €7.1 million in fresh funding will be used to finance a second factory and a broader push across and beyond Europe. With Volare 01 now operational and financing secured for a second facility, the Finnish company is preparing for a roadmap that spans multiple plants across Europe, built in partnership with food industry players who generate the side streams it processes. > “Europe needs significantly more locally produced protein, and we have built a model that can deliver it efficiently and competitively. Our next step is to replicate our model from Finland and bring more local, efficient protein production capacity to Europe and beyond,” said Hyvönen. For the European startup ecosystem, Volare’s success signals a growing appetite for sustainable deep-tech solutions that address food security and resource efficiency. As the company scales, it could serve as a model for other startups looking to turn waste into value.