FiE 2022 start-up challenge: Edible food coatings, sustainable vanilla, microalgae proteins and upcycled alt-milk

14 Dec 2022 --- Creating sustainable food production systems and environmentally-friendly products and F&B solutions hinges on green advancements in food science. Industry’s cohort of next-generation technologies featured prominently at the recent Food ingredients Europe (FiE 2022) event, held in Paris, France.

Each year, the Startup Innovation Challenge 2022 shines a spotlight on companies breaking new ground in the food industry. In 2022, more start-ups than ever before applied to the challenge, the event’s organizers highlight. FoodIngredientsFirst caught up with this year’s winners, who were all keen to share their unique stories.

Bio2Coat is the big winner of the evening, with two awards. Bio2Coat’s edible coating tech
One winner is Barcelona-based packaging sustainability start-up Bio2Coat, which won Most Innovative Sustainable Solution and Most Innovative Service, Technology or Digital Solution Supporting the F&B Industry. 

José Ignacio Velasco, a co-founder of Bio2Coat, speaks to FoodIngredientsFirst about the company’s winning entry, a natural, edible coating that extends the shelf life of food products. This win represents the culmination of over a decade of work for Bio2Coat. 

“Bio2Coat was born because of scientific collaboration between the co-founders, myself and Farayde Matta, which started in 2011 when we first met at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC),” says Velasco.

“We immediately identified synergies between our research lines, a complementary background and expertise in food technology and material science and, more importantly, a shared dream of helping our planet by reducing food waste and plastic waste from packaging materials.”

Velasco highlights that the company benefited from the support and intensive coaching we received from EIT Food programs (Seedbed and Food Accelerator Network), ICEX (Desafía Netherlands), EOI and Ajuntament de Terrassa, along with participation in relevant events dedicated to Food and Agri-tech start-ups.

“We also received financial support from the Catalan and Spanish governments (Neotec, Start-Up Capital and Industrial Doctorate programs), and prizes from the EIT Food programs.”

However, Velasco is still focused on what comes after this award. 

“We have so much to do and still a lot to accomplish to launch our product on the market. First and foremost, we need to complete our first round of investment to accelerate the upcoming steps of completing the team, start-up our production facility and have our first saleable product available in Q2 2023,” he concludes.

 Gali Fried, VP of business development and marketing at Vanilla Vida, is thrilled with success after success.Vanilla Vida tastes rapid success
Israeli-based Vanilla Vida has cracked the code on vanilla flavor potency with its computer-guided curing process and other high-tech cultivation methods, which the company claims can scientifically craft each batch of vanilla to a specific taste. The company’s production system earned the Most Innovative Processing Technology award.

“Vanilla Vida grows and delivers top-quality, tailor-made vanilla beans that perfectly meet the market’s demand and business needs, ensuring a stable supply chain and maximum flavor,” Gali Fried, VP of business development and marketing, tells FoodIngredientsFirst.

“We grow vanilla in climate-controlled greenhouses, achieving more yield with less ground and all with a zero carbon footprint,” she highlights.

“We dry the vanilla in a data-driven curing facility which is the first of its kind and fully automated. We achieve the most concentrated version of vanilla bean, which allows our clients to use less vanilla to achieve more flavor.”

Vanilla Vida’s win comes only two years after its founding. 

“Vanilla Vida was established in 2020 as a part of “The Kitchen Hub” by Strauss Group,” says Fried. 

“The idea came from the first founder Shlomy Kadosh, a farmer with a large experience in agricultural. He was visiting Mexico and was impressed by the vanilla growth, so he started to think of a solution to grow vanilla anywhere.” 

Since conception, results have been rapid. “By the end of 2021, the company raised US$15.5 million from six strategic partners.By mid-2022, the company built 1.5 acres of climate-controlled greenhouses and a novel data-driven in-door curing facility for industrial scaling,” explains Fried.

“June 2022 was when we started to manufacture (cure) on a large scale in our beta site. The ability to build it in only six months and achieve high-quality results as we did on a small scale at the lab was amazing.”

As with the other winners, Vanilla Vida is now keen to expand. “2023 will be dedicated to increasing the capacity of yields in our greenhouses, establishing additional greenhouses outside of Israel, and closing the Proof of Concept  on the agricultural department,” concludes Fried. 

Kern Tec wins with its upcycled alt-milk solutions.Kern Tec wins with upcycled milk
Austrian upcyclers Kern Tec won Most Innovative Food or Beverage Ingredient with its proprietary processes to convert discarded fruit pits into valuable ingredients, with its alternative milk products snatching the prize this year. 

Michael Beitl, Co-Founder of Kern Tec, outlines how Kern Tec began. “The start of Kern Tec was the realization of the vast amounts of stone fruit pits being thrown away yearly: solely in the European food industry, over 500,000 tons of pits remain unused - a total waste of resources,” he says.

“Soon after came the development of our process for splitting the pits and extracting the included cyanide content, which first and foremost opened up the possibility of saving stone fruit pits on an industrial scale in the food industry.”

“The third and final step, which also helped us succeed at this year’s Fi Europe Awards, was the creation of our alternative milk products. With this, we can provide partners in an industry with a ready-to-use solution that not only tastes great but can also be considered the most sustainable resource being used for non-dairy products,” he concludes.

Beitl now wants to scale the product, albeit sustainably. 

“We’re going to make our ready-to-use compound available on a big scale to our first B2B customers acting in the dairy and non-dairy segment. Together with them, we want to introduce our new kind of alternative milk – as well as additional alternatives to yogurt, cheese, ice cream and more – and show the market that sustainability, taste and demand go hand-in-hand.”

Brevel takes home an award for its microalgae protein alternative.  

Brevel microalgae protein nets prize 
Israeli start-up Brevel won the Most Innovative Plant-Based or Alternative Ingredient award with its sustainable microalgae protein. 

Yoav Earon, CBO of Brevel, is glad microalgae protein is being recognized more broadly.

“The current alternative protein market has many problems regarding cost, flavor, functionality, quality and sustainability. Microalgae are the ultimate source of protein in terms of sustainability. Still, unfortunately, the existing options for microalgae as an alternative protein have very high costs and flavor barriers,” he says.  

“Our first major operation was creating a solution for a microalgae-based protein that manages to solve these challenges,” he highlights. “Our technology is based on high-tech indoor, sterile and fully automated systems illuminated from within at high intensity.” 

“The unique process enables the production of microalgae at a cost reduction of more than 90%. It includes nutrient-rich ingredients and functionalities that are only produced in the presence of light.”

The prominent awards of FiE, the Fi Innovation Awards, highlighted a similar variety of endeavors from some key players in the F&B industry. 

By James Davies