Agri-biotech startup GreenGrahi raises Rs 32 crore led by Avaana Capital, others

Agri-biotech startup GreenGrahi has raised Rs 32 crore ($3.73 million) in a seed funding round led by Avaana Capital, marking the largest-ever funding round in India's emerging insect biotechnology sector. 

The round also saw participation from Huddle Ventures, Campus Fund, Blume Founders Fund, and a cohort of prominent angel investors, including Nexus Ventures’ Nitin Sharma and Northpoint Capital’s Sameer Brij Verma.

Purpose of fundraising

The Delhi-based startup plans to deploy the fresh capital toward building a homegrown Black Soldier Fly (BSF) factory capable of processing 150 tonnes of agricultural feedstock daily. Additionally, GreenGrahi aims to expand its scientific team and establish a footprint in international markets, particularly the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.

What does GreenGahi do?

Founded in 2021 by Shivali Sugand and Siddharth Sharma, GreenGrahi is pioneering the use of insect biotechnology to produce high-performance proteins, functional oils, and hydrolysates for sectors such as aquaculture, poultry, and pet nutrition.

Alongside animal nutrition, the startup has developed a new generation of biological agricultural inputs—including biofertilisers, biostimulants, and biopesticides—to enhance soil health and reduce reliance on chemical-based solutions.

“As wild fish stocks continue to decline and protein demand rises, the pressure on aquafeed and livestock inputs will only intensify,” said Siddharth Sharma, Co-founder of GreenGrahi. “We are building a platform that makes high-quality, science-driven feed and agri-inputs accessible, affordable, and scalable for global markets.”

Meeting growing demand

GreenGrahi currently serves over 10 B2B customers in the animal and plant nutrition industries and claims to have a pipeline demand of Rs 560 crore from these partnerships alone. However, scaling production remains a key challenge. The startup's existing facility processes about 3–4 tonnes per day, and the forthcoming factory, expected to be operational by the end of 2025, will multiply that capacity by nearly 50 times. 

“Our next facility will be a game-changer, enabling us to meet both domestic and international demand. We anticipate starting global shipments by the first quarter of next year,” Sharma said.

Once operational, GreenGrahi expects overseas markets to account for approximately 30–35% of its revenue, with strong traction particularly from the pet food sector.

Addressing multiple challenges at once

GreenGrahi’s model addresses multiple environmental and economic challenges at once. By repurposing agricultural residues through insect bioconversion, the startup offers a sustainable alternative to traditional feed ingredients like fishmeal and soy, whose volatile pricing and ecological impacts have raised concerns globally.

“GreenGrahi is creating category-shaping innovation in the food and agri-tech space,” said Shruti Srivastava, Investment Director at Avaana Capital. “Their proprietary insect biotechnology and bioprocessing platform enables the production of high-performance, cost-efficient ingredients at scale—helping build resilient food supply chains for global food security through science-backed, market-ready solutions.”

Avaana Capital, which raised $150 million last year for its climate and sustainability-focused fund, has already deployed nearly a third of its corpus.