TTebrio
Tebrio is a Spanish biotech company that industrially breeds Tenebrio molitor (yellow mealworm) and transforms it into premium insect protein and lipids for animal and pet feed, 100% organic frass biofertilizer, and chitin/chitosan for pharma, cosmetics and bioplastics, using low-value cereal by-products as input. Founded in 2014 in Salamanca as MealFood Europe, it has raised roughly €30M in its latest round (Oct 2024, venture debt + equity) and around $94M in total, and is building what it calls the world's largest insect farm — a 90,000 m², ~€110M plant in Doñinos de Salamanca designed for over 100,000 tonnes of product per year by 2028. It is the first Spanish insect company certified as a B Corp.
SectorsFoodtech & Agtech, Deeptech & Hardware, Energy & Climate, Biotechnology, Insect protein, Animal nutrition, Biomaterials
Start-up MapFoodtech & Agtech › Alternative protein & novel ingredients
Founders
A
Adriana Casillas
Co-founder & CEO
A
Adriana Casillas Barros
Co-founder & CEO
S
Sabas de Diego
Co-founder & CTO
Global models 5
YYnsect
France · www.ynsect.com ↗
Farmed mealworms (Tenebrio molitor) at industrial scale for protein, oil and frass sold into animal feed, pet food and fertiliser, the closest match to Tebrio's model; it went into liquidation in 2025.
$600MComparable
IInnovaFeed
France · innovafeed.com ↗
Farms insects at industrial scale on agri-food by-products and sells insect protein, oil and frass to aquafeed, pet food and fertiliser buyers.
$500MComparable
PProtix
Netherlands · protix.eu ↗
Runs large insect farms that turn food by-products into insect protein and lipids for feed and pet food and frass for fertiliser, backed by Tyson Foods.
$150MComparable
AAgronutris
France · www.agronutris.com ↗
Is building an industrial insect-rearing plant that turns agri-food by-products into protein and oil for animal and pet feed.
$110MComparable
AAspire Food Group
Canada · aspirefg.com ↗
Runs an automated large-scale insect farm that sells insect protein mainly to pet food makers.
$100MComparable
In the same niche 22 others
See all in the Start-ups Map →
Notes: Most funded first
Investors 5
Open as list →
Funding rounds 2
·1 not counted| Date | Round | Amount | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-10-29 | Series B (estimated) | €30M incl. debt: equity and debt, the split was not disclosed |
CDTI Innvierte, GPC
+2 more
|
| 2020-06-01 | Series A | — |
Lead not disclosed
+2 more
|