Today, the Biomimicry Institute awarded the 2022
Ray of Hope Prize® to GreenPod Labs — an
India-based agtech startup focused on tackling food loss problems in
developing countries. By learning how fruits and vegetables naturally resist
pest and fungal pathogens, GreenPod Labs showcases how learning from nature can
solve both climate and societal problems. As the 2022 Ray of Hope Prize
recipient, GreenPod Labs will receive $100,000 in support of its groundbreaking
work.
About a third of all food produced worldwide goes to waste; and in countries
like India, much of that waste occurs on the farm or during storage and
transport of the food. GreenPod Labs’ food-preservation technology works without
the need for cold storage by integrating a deep understanding of crop
physiology, effectively communicating with crops to activate their built-in
defense mechanisms, and can extend the shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables
by 40-60 percent at ambient temperature and conditions.
“We are proud to support GreenPod Labs as the 2022 recipient of the Ray of Hope
Prize for their work to eliminate post-harvest food loss,” said Jared
Yarnall-Schane, Innovation Director
at the Biomimicry Institute. “Project Drawdown cites reducing food
waste
as one of the most impactful things we can do to lower the amount of CO2
produced, while at the same time ensuring better livelihoods and nutrition for
people around the world. We are inspired by GreenPod Labs' biomimetic approach
to solving such a critical issue."
The GreenPod team consists of 17 innovators passionate about solving the food
waste and loss problem, with over 30 years of combined research and operational
experience in agriculture and food biotechnology. When plants get infected by
abiotic or biotic stress, they release unique volatile compounds that act as
signal molecules to activate the defense mechanism in the neighboring plant to
protect itself. Each plant has a unique composition of these compounds for
different stresses; and the biomimicry behind GreenPod Labs’ solution replicates
the unique volatile fingerprint for each crop to protect the fruits and
vegetables after harvest.
the exciting potential of cultivated, fermented and plant-based protein innovation
Join us as Aleph Farms, the Better Meat Co, the Good Food Institute and Plantible Foods discuss the latest advancements in cultivated, plant-based, and fermentation-derived proteins — and how incorporating alternative proteins can help brands significantly reduce environmental impacts, while conserving natural resources — Tuesday, Oct. 15 at SB'24 San Diego.
GreenPod’s technology also helps improve farmer wellbeing and livelihoods by ensuring greater longevity and consistency of their produce, which in turn enables them to command higher, fairer prices — and even helps them expand to new markets and retailers without the need for cold storage during transport.
“What won me over is that their nature-inspired solution not only minimizes food waste — it also improves the health and financial wellbeing of thousands of farmers across India while conserving freshwater and mitigating carbon loss,” said Andrew Courtney, Deputy Chief Science & Innovation Officer and VP of Programs at the National Geographic Society, and one of this year’s judges. “This is a powerful business, conservation and human story that is achieved through a seemingly simple innovation.”
GreenPod Labs has commercially launched three products so far in India, working
with over 150 customers. The Biomimicry Institute says the company’s ability to
uniquely target specific plants, its cost-effective and easy-to-adopt approach,
and plant-based chemistry set them apart from competitors. In the coming months,
12 different products for crops will be developed, and funding from this year’s
Prize will help the company further develop its innovative solution.
Fusion Bionic's anti-fogging coating | Image credit: Fusion Bionic
This year’s second-place winner is Germany's Fusion
Bionic, which has developed a cutting-edge laser
technology capable of integrating biomimetic micro and nanostructures on a
variety of material surfaces. Today's surface-finishing technologies rely
largely on ecologically harmful manufacturing processes such as chemical
etching
(e.g. consumer electronics), sand
blasting
(e.g. medical), and coating
solutions (e.g photovoltaics).
Fusion Bionic’s Direct Laser Interference Patterning
(DLIP) technology enables the
application of functional surface-texture solutions inspired by natural surface
structures such as those found on lotus leaves, shark skin, collembola, morpho
butterfly and moth eyes — which allows for advanced surface features such as
self-cleaning, anti-icing, anti-fogging, antibacterial, improved absorption,
decoration, noise or drag reduction and more without the toxic or polluting
elements. As runner-up, Fusion Bionic is awarded $25,000 to support its novel
solution.
The Ray of Hope Prize, created in honor of the late sustainable business pioneer
Ray C. Anderson, is awarded
each year to the world’s top nature-inspired startup after 10 finalist
teams
conclude a 10-week accelerator program. This year, GreenPod Labs, Fusion Bionic
and eight other participating companies were selected from a pool of 212
applications from 54 different countries. The finalists and recipients were
chosen from an expert judging
panel — which included
trusted experts in the field of biomimicry, industry, and entrepreneurship. All
program participants learned about sustainable business practices, met with
industry and startup mentors, refined their scientific communication skills, and
were invited to an immersive retreat in the California Redwoods to reconnect
with the natural world and bond with their fellow bio-inspired innovators.
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Sustainable Brands Staff
Published Nov 16, 2022 7am EST / 4am PST / 12pm GMT / 1pm CET