Belgium-based biotech startup FlyBlast, once a rising player in the bioengineering of black soldier flies (BSF) to produce high-value proteins like insulin, has filed for bankruptcy. But amid its collapse lies a cautionary tale—and a major missed opportunity for the agritech sector.
Founded by industry veteran Johan Jacobs, FlyBlast set out to revolutionise protein production using genetically modified insects, targeting the cultivated meat industry with cost-saving biocomponents such as insulin and growth factors. The technology showed significant promise, with the startup successfully engineering three transgenic BSF lines in just over a year, including one that expressed human insulin.
However, FlyBlast’s decision to focus on cultivated meat—a sector plagued by long timelines, high capital intensity, and uncertain regulatory outcomes—proved to be a critical misstep. Despite technical achievements, FlyBlast couldn’t secure commercial traction or funding fast enough to survive.
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“Some cultivated meat companies had already solved their media costs, others were in denial, and many were just not ready or able to pay for early-stage solutions,” Jacobs said. Meanwhile, VCs were deterred by what Jacobs described as “layer upon layer” of risk, from the nascent cultivated meat market to FlyBlast’s own unproven tech.
Yet beyond the startup’s downfall, the business case for transgenic insect biomanufacturing remains compelling. Unlike microbes or plants, insects like BSF naturally possess insulin-like pathways, allowing for more biologically aligned expression of animal proteins at a fraction of the cost. The scalability and low overhead of insect farming also give it a distinct advantage.
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FlyBlast explored a pivot to biopharma and animal health but lacked the funding runway and team capacity to execute a full transition. Jacobs admitted that with better backing and a clearer focus from the outset, the technology could have delivered real impact.
The story underscores the pitfalls of misaligned go-to-market strategies in deeptech but also leaves the door open for future agritech innovators to harness insect-based platforms for pharmaceuticals, animal nutrition, and high-value biomolecules—provided they pick the right entry point.
As one more biotech startup exits, the lesson is clear: the opportunity in transgenic insect platforms isn’t dead—it just needs the right market fit and funding strategy to take flight.
