Circular Economy Startups

Grounded is a women-run Kenyan company that makes over 50 non-toxic home cleaning and personal care products using African-grown ingredients and packages them in recycled plastic collected in Kenya. It is a B-Corp certified, solar-powered brand sold in retail outlets across East Africa and seeking distribution partners in new markets.

2 investors

HBI is an Italian company that developed an "urban circular biorefinery" model to treat sewage sludge, recovering water, renewable energy, and critical raw materials such as phosphorus from wastewater treatment plants. Its technology combines hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and gasification, targeting wastewater plant operators seeking regulatory compliance and circular-economy value.

2 investors

Hemster offers a technology platform that creates personalized fit profiles, using a Fit Profile algorithm to save a person's measurements as reusable "Patterns" and match garments to them. The consumer-focused product aims to provide accurate clothing fit regardless of standard sizing in the fashion industry.

2 investors

Highcon builds digital cutting and creasing machines for manufacturers of folding carton and corrugated packaging and displays, offering an alternative to conventional die-making and setup processes. Its systems serve global and local brands to address shorter time-to-market, smaller job sizes, and sustainability demands driven by e-commerce.

2 investors

HOLO Footwear designs and sells shoes made with eco-friendly materials, aiming to combine style, performance, and affordability. It is a consumer footwear brand marketing all-terrain shoes for versatile, active lifestyles.

2 investors

Homa2u is an online store selling home renovation and interior materials such as tiles, ventilation blocks, decorative mosaics, and overstock building products. It positions its offering around sustainable, reused, and long-lasting home design pieces sold directly to consumers.

2 investors

Hoola One designs and manufactures technologies for decontaminating soils affected by plastics and microplastics, with a focus on plastic pellet (nurdle) spills. Its equipment serves clients responding to plastic spill contamination.

2 investors

Hootie Hoo designs kids' outerwear such as jackets and pants for outdoor winter play, made with recycled materials and built for durability. Founded in Vermont, the company sells children's cold-weather apparel.

2 investors

Hubcycle identifies and sources by-products from the agri-food industry, transforming them into high-quality, sustainable ingredients for food manufacturers at competitive prices.

2 investors

2 investors

Hyfé operates a refining process that extracts specialty ingredients and chemical building blocks from food-processing waste and biomass. It produces high-performance ingredients for the food, beverage, personal care, and nutraceutical industries, along with glucose streams and chemical feedstocks for biomanufacturing.

2 investors

Imperfect Produce is a grocery delivery service that sources surplus, cosmetically imperfect, and overstocked food items directly from farmers and producers, then delivers them at discounted prices to consumers. The company aims to reduce food waste and build a more sustainable food system.

2 investors

Infinna is a circular fiber material made 100% from cotton-rich textile waste that replaces virgin materials in the fashion and apparel industry. The company targets fashion brands seeking to meet sustainability and circularity targets while producing high-quality garments.

2 investors

IonKraft, a spin-off from the Institute of Plastics Processing (IKV) at RWTH Aachen University, develops a barrier coating technology for mono-material plastic containers that provides the barrier and chemical resistance of multi-layer packaging while remaining fully recyclable. Its coating targets makers of chemical-product packaging seeking recyclable, lower-cost containers.

2 investors

Itelyum is an Italian industrial waste management company that regenerates used mineral oils into lubricant bases, purifies solvents from chemical waste for the pharmaceutical industry, and provides environmental services for public and private clients. Operating on a circular-economy model, it serves industrial partners across a range of hazardous and non-hazardous waste streams.

2 investors

Jeosal Materials Research Corporation is a Kingston, Ontario lab developing economically viable recycling processes for fibre reinforced plastics, particularly fibreglass (GFRP) from end-of-life watercraft. Working with Queen's University, it recovers raw materials for reuse in the sporting goods, electronics, and automotive sectors.

2 investors

Jiva Materials makes Soluboard, a patent-protected rigid printed circuit board (PCB) laminate that is recyclable and biodegradable, produced by impregnating natural fibres with a water-soluble polymer and halogen-free flame retardant. It supplies copper clad laminate panels to PCB fabricators and OEMs as a lower-carbon alternative to conventional glass-fibre/epoxy substrates.

2 investors

Kern Tec is a B2B producer that upcycles stone-fruit kernels — such as apricot, cherry, and plum pits — into ingredients like seeds, pastes, oils, and granulates for the food and cosmetics industries. Its apricot-kernel products serve as nut-free bases for dairy alternatives, vegan cheese, confectionery, snacks, and cosmetic oils, with customers across the DACH region.

2 investors

Kultevat develops biomanufacturing using its Kultevar dandelion (TKS) to produce Kultra natural rubber and other biomaterials as regenerative, plant-based alternatives to petrochemical polymers like synthetic rubber. It partners with brands and manufacturers seeking to replace extractive rubber sourcing in their supply chains with materials made through regenerative agriculture.

2 investors

KUORI develops biodegradable and recyclable materials derived from food by-products, particularly upcycled olive pits and nutshells, for use in high-performance applications traditionally served by conventional plastics. The company aims to replace fossil-based materials in the rubber and elastics industry while eliminating microplastic pollution and reducing carbon emissions.

2 investors

Lignetics Group manufactures consumer products made from recycled wood waste, including wood heating pellets, BBQ products, animal bedding, and cat litter. The company operates a family of consumer brands focused on sustainable, environmentally friendly goods.

2 investors

Living Earth is a manufacturer and retailer of organic mulch, compost, soil, high-performance soil amendments, and landscaping aggregates such as sand, gravel, and rock. It sells to home gardeners and landscaping/job sites primarily in Texas and Tennessee, offers bulk delivery, and recycles clean green materials like brush, grass clippings, and leaves.

2 investors

Living Ink produces black pigments and inks made from discarded algae biomass as a replacement for petroleum-based carbon black. Its ALGAE BLACK pigment and ALGAE INK product lines serve brands in packaging, footwear, textiles, cosmetics, and paints.

2 investors

ShopLocale is a meal delivery service that provides meals made with high-protein, organic natural ingredients, without seed oils and reduced microplastics. The service targets health-conscious consumers seeking science-backed nutrition.

2 investors