Volare converts food-industry byproducts into high-value insect protein, oil and fertiliser at industrial scale using the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) and a proprietary zero-waste, fossil-free process. Its ingredients are targeted at aquafeed, pet food and poultry feed, and the company has an offtake agreement with Skretting. Volare is piloting insect-fed rainbow trout via a 150,000 kg collaboration with Alltech Fennoaqua, Kalankasvatus Vääräniemi and Kalavapriikki. The company says integrated technologies deliver a 30% reduction in processing energy use and aim to cut hygienisation energy use by 50%, positioning the process as highly energy-efficient. Volare will begin building its first industrial plant, Volare 01, in Finland in 2025; the facility is expected to produce protein equivalent to 200 million Baltic herrings annually (about 18% of Finland’s commercial fish catch in protein terms). Volare is a spinoff from VTT that produces high-quality proteins and oils by growing black soldier flies on non-edible parts of grains and other food-production side streams. The company’s technological solution covers rearing the insects and processing them into industry-compatible end products, with a negligible environmental load compared with traditional alternatives. Volare already has a pilot plant up and running and is aiming to start construction of a commercial-scale production plant in 2023, with plans to build several plants in Europe each year. Management includes co-founders CEO Tuure Parviainen and CTO Matti Tähtinen and newly named COO Jarna Hyvönen. The company says one commercial plant can feed 4.75 million salmon per year; it currently employs six people and plans to grow to ten this year. Volare has raised €0.7M in funding from Maki.vc to support its planned rapid growth.

Total raised

$31M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Equity

Latest activity

May 2025