Fresh Inset - Vidre+ technology allowing you to extend the shelf life and freshness of fruits, vegetables and flowers using 1 methylcyclopropene
Project title
Fresh Inset - Vidre+ technology allowing you to extend the shelf life and freshness of fruits, vegetables and flowers using 1 methylcyclopropene
Name of Beneficiary/Beneficiaries
Fresh Inset Spółka Akcyjna
Name of programme
Smart Growth Operational Program
Competition
Support for research and development projects in the pre-seed phase by proof of concept funds – Bridge Alfa
Project value
PLN 3,000,000.00
Funding value
PLN 2,400,000.00
Project delivery period
October 1, 2017 – March 31, 2020
Get to know our team
Fresh Inset is the most international Polish startup. The team responsible for creating the Vidre+ technology consists of scientists from Toruń led by Ph D. Andrzej Wolan, while the business and operational team operates in Warsaw, Tricity, Washington, Minneapolis, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Lima and Santiago. Currently, team members with experience in, among others, companies such as: DOW, BASF, Syngenta, AgroFresh, Cynamid, Fish&Richardson are working on the development and commercialization of the technology.
See the effect of our work
The cause of aging of fruits and vegetables is ethylene, a natural plant hormone (in the form of a gas), which accelerates their ripening. Picked fruit and vegetables release more ethylene under the influence of stress, e.g. due to picking, temperature changes, moisture during transport, or after physical damage. So far, to extend the freshness of apples and pears, the world-known, safe and active substance 1-MCP was used, which turns into gas under the influence of moisture and inhibits the release of ethylene. To make it effective, the 24-hour application process took place in airtight rooms (warehouses, cold stores).
Fresh Inset has developed Vidre+ technology, which is the first (and only) product in the world that releases 1-MCP with a delay and gradually, without the need to apply it in a tightly closed room. In the Vidre+ technology, the active substance is gradually released from a sticker stuck on the vegetable/fruit/flowers or on the packaging/box in which the products are located.
Video: How does Vidre+ technology work?
Video
What problem does our project solve?
The use of Vidre+ technology on a global scale solves a whole range of problems. Firstly, it reduces food waste - at every stage, from production to logistics and reaching the end customer. In the EU alone, this amounts to approximately 40-50 million tons of wasted food annually, worth approximately EUR 150 billion. This means that Vidre+ protection not only reduces food waste, but also reduces global fresh food shortages.
The use of Vidre+ will have a global positive impact on the environment - the technology developed by Fresh Inset means that the carbon footprint created at the stage of harvesting the products and the water resources used are not wasted as a result of the loss of goods during delivery. Our calculations show that if we manage to cover 10% of food in target markets with Vidre+ protection, we will save a carbon footprint equal to the annual CO2 emissions of over 2 million cars with the EURO6 fuel consumption standard.
An important factor is also greater democratization of the market and increased competitiveness of smaller companies and food suppliers. This is possible because the use of Vidre+ technology does not require any change in the supply chain. This is why Vidre + in functional stickers on a product, packaging or box means the availability of the active substance for smaller producers who do not have warehouses/cold stores and for food producers for which the active substance has not been available so far due to its form of application and the need for transport from the field straight to sales points, bypassing cold stores/warehouses.
Finally, thanks to Fresh Inset technology, healthier, better-preserved food will reach the end consumer.
Who will benefit from the project results?
Vidre+ is a technology that will revolutionize the problem of food waste, so everyone can benefit from the results of Fresh Inset's work. Ultimately, the beneficiary of our technology is the consumer who receives a high-quality product.
Our partners are among the beneficiaries. These are companies dealing with post-harvest plant protection, growers and companies packing goods for transport, the entire logistics chain: companies dealing in the distribution, trade and transport of fruit and vegetables, packaging manufacturers, stickers and labels converters.
The environment is also a beneficiary (reduction of food waste, smaller carbon footprint).
What was the biggest challenge for us in implementing the project?
A challenge in Fresh Inset's business is product registration - placing products on the market requires the consent of the local regulator. This is a time-consuming and expensive process, especially since the Company has adopted a development strategy under which it is building a presence in South and North America, and subsequently on the main export markets of the European Union and Africa. There are many markets in which we plan to be present.
The challenges also included relatively high costs related to the company's global development, but we have a fantastic group of entities and investors that support us in this process. Finally, the challenge is product segmentation, depending on the type of fruit, vegetable, flower, herb, etc. - this means additional activities necessary, e.g. for registration.