Agriodor, a French agtech company from our Agri & Food Tech group, has announced a €15 million Series A financing round to accelerate the global deployment of its scent-based biocontrol technology in international crop-protection markets.
The round was led by the Environmental and Solidarity Revolution Fund (managed by Crédit Mutuel Impact), with participation from Région Sud Investissement and CAAP Création (Crédit Agricole Alpes-Provence), alongside historical investors Capagro, CapHorn and SWEN Capital Partners.
Agriodor, founded in 2019 by Alain Thibault and Dr. Ené Leppik (a spin-off of INRAE), develops solutions based on scents naturally emitted by plants to attract, repel or disrupt pest insects. The company positions this approach as a high-performing and scalable alternative to conventional insecticides, in a context of rising pest resistance, regulatory pressure and biodiversity loss.
Agriodor's key milestone cited is a worldwide first: the successful deployment of a semiochemical (allomone) in row crops, with a breakthrough application in sugar beet fields in France. The new funding is expected to support platform development, research and development programmes and international expansion, with planned commercial acceleration in Europe, Latin America and North America, and further reinforcement of R&D capabilities through artificial intelligence.
Turning a scientific breakthrough into market-ready crop protection
Agriodor’s first product, targeting sugar beet aphids, is commercialised via an exclusive distribution agreement with Syngenta, supporting French growers in the fight against yellows virus. The company is also expanding to new crops and insect families such as fruit flies, whiteflies and thrips, and is using co-development partnerships with established crop-protection companies for selected projects.
Alain Thibault, Co-Founder and President of Agriodor, said:
“We are convinced that the future of crop protection lies in biology, not chemistry. With this funding round, we mark Agriodor’s transformation – from a leading French Agtech startup into a global specialist in scent-based biocontrol. Our technology provides farmers with an effective tool to protect yields while preserving the environment and human health.”
Dr. Ené Leppik, Co-Founder and CTO, added:
“Olfaction is a universal language for insects, and we cracked it. Our technology represents a revolution in crop protection — high-performing, residue-free and biodiversity-friendly — that can be used alone or in combination with any other crop protection tool.”
Nadia Bouzigues, Managing Director of Crédit Mutuel Impact, said:
“The biocontrol technology developed by Agriodor is highly distinctive in its mode of action and represents a promising solution to protect both crops and biodiversity in a sustainable way. We are delighted to support the talented Agriodor team and provide them with the means to deploy their innovative platform across Europe and worldwide. This investment is fully aligned with the strategy of our Environmental and Solidarity Revolution Fund, financed by the societal dividend of Crédit Mutuel Alliance Fédérale.”
Watch or read our earlier interview with Agriodor's CFO Olivier Le Port here.
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