EXIST start-up grant for eco:fibr - pineapple fibers as a raw material for environmentally friendly paper

Hanover, March 16, 2022.

Pineapples are the second most popular tropical fruit in the world after bananas. Around 25 million tons are harvested every year, producing a lot of green waste. The thick and prickly pineapple leaves are difficult to compost and are usually ploughed under or incinerated, a labor-intensive process. eco:fibr has developed a process to solve the disposal problem of pineapple waste and at the same time save trees from deforestation, as the plant residues are an ideal raw material: free, available in large quantities and recycling solves several environmental problems at the same time. "Compared to conventional paper production, cellulose production from pineapple leaves is much more environmentally friendly because it can be achieved with less water consumption.

In addition, the resulting product is not bleached with chlorine-containing substances and is therefore completely biodegradable," explains Merit Ulmer, Master of Science, who developed the process in the laboratories of the Institute of Technical Chemistry at Leibniz Universität Hannover together with Michelle Spitzer and Julian Kolbeck and a team of supporters. The pulp from eco:fibr can be used as an alternative to conventional wood pulp and can therefore be used for every conceivable paper and cardboard product.

The original idea came to the students in 2018 during a trip to Costa Rica - an honorary study project. Since then, the interdisciplinary group has already extracted cellulose from pineapple plant residues in the laboratory. With the EXIST start-up grant of 133,500 euros from the funding program of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), which is co-financed by the European Social Fund (ESF), eco:fibr and a partner now want to deliver the final proof of concept with an industrial-scale production of five tons.

In addition, a pilot plant is being built on the partner plantation in Costa Rica in order to produce the first margins of pulp there from 2023 and attract customers for large-scale production. There is already great interest from the paper industry. With the EXIST start-up grant, eco:fibr is primarily covering personnel and development costs, and is currently in the process of founding its GmbH: "With the funding, we can finally devote ourselves 100% to the further development of eco:fibr without fear," reports Merit Ulmer.

eco:fibr is also a success story of starting business, the joint start-up service of hannoverimpuls and Leibniz Universität Hannover: "The eco:fibr team is very deserving of the EXIST start-up grant. They have been working tirelessly on the project in an interdisciplinary manner for many years. The result is a real problem solver," explains Janina Segatz, start-up consultant at starting business at Leibniz Universität Hannover.

"Every fifth tree that is felled worldwide ends up in paper production, and eco:fibr's ingenious idea is helping to remedy this. With their motto 'Turning waste into purpose', they also provide an outstanding example of sustainable management," says Tobias Quebe, project manager of starting business at hannoverimpuls, who is also delighted with the funding approval.

Thanks to the EXIST funding, eco:fibr now has one year to refine the innovative process and realize the model factory. Last year, eco:fibr had already won the special "University & Science" prize in the Startup-Impuls start-up competition organized by hannoverimpuls and Sparkasse Hannover.