The insect farm that swallowed 600 million euros in public money

Europe's largest insect farm goes bankrupt after burning through 600 million in subsidies

How much public money does it take for a company deemed strategic for the EU to end up bankrupt? The answer circulating in economic circles is devastating: 600 million euros. Europe's largest insect farm, the flagship bet on alternative proteins, has filed for creditor protection after receiving that amount in European aid. The last injection, of 200 million, was a desperate rescue attempt. It was not enough.

The failure comes as no surprise to those who analyzed the business model. The insects are fed soybean, wheat and oat flour — in other words, exactly what the project was meant to reduce in animal feed. The process drives up the cost of the final product, leaving it unable to compete with imported soy. On top of that, consumers have not accepted cricket flour as an alternative to traditional protein, and regulation does not help either.

A recurring suspicion: these projects are not designed for investors, but for politicians who need to pin on the medal of green innovation. The numbers never added up for actual production. The justification of "food sovereignty" collapses on its own: if the insects eat soy, the dependency remains — it just changes vehicle.

Underneath it all, the case points to a broader problem: millions of euros of European funds poured into projects that only survive as long as the subsidies do. Once again, the taxpayer is left paying the bill for a green narrative that does not stand up to scrutiny.

The question remains whether this is an isolated case or the pattern of an industry born from easy money. Meanwhile, the answer to the initial question stays the same: 600 million is not enough to make the impossible profitable.

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