Zero-water shampoo start-up wins Smart Agrifood Summit award

A biodegradable cosmetics start-up using agricultural waste to make zero-water shampoo has been awarded the gender equality prize at the Smart Agrifood Summit, Malaga, in June 2018.

INUIT, one of five graduates of EIT Climate-KIC’s Accelerator programme in attendance, showed how the circular economy can reduce costs and create jobs, countering the traditional idea in the sector that sustainability measures reduce company profit and damage the economy.

The start-ups were there to learn from Mercedes Iborra, the founder and COO of VisualNAcert, an agrifood company recognised as the most innovative in the Valencian community.

INUIT founder Mónica Bernal told EIT Climate-KIC –

“It was really interesting for us, an inspiration. Sometimes, when you are working on an entrepreneurial project, it is really important to hear from the people with a lot of experience. I think we learned a lot from Mercedes.”

“We also met Thanh Tam Le, Director of Climate-KIC Mediterranean. It was interesting to hear a lot of ways to find money, prizes and partnerships, which is important, and we are now in conversation with an investor.”

“The summit was focused on big farms and the production of olive oil, which is not really our focus, but we also found an oil provider from Andalusia, because we use bio-olive oil in our products.”

Attendees included BIOCUP, which has created a reusable and compostable glass with bioplastics that degrade in six months, HYDROCEL, which uses recycled material otherwise destined for landfill in the development of products such as underground irrigation systems with exuding hoses and SMART COMFORT, which uses infrared heating systems in poultry farms, improving energy efficiency, the comfort of animals and their productivity, while decreasing the level of disease.

EIT Climate-KIC Spain Director, José Luis Muñoz said – 

“The Spanish agrifood sector has a unique opportunity to lead the drive towards sustainability on a global scale. This is an extraordinary moment and there is no time to lose. Legislation is becoming more and more favourable and is removing barriers to achieving green growth. And there’s no way back. It is a path that we have to take and we have to do it together.” 

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