New Start-ups Venture into Circular Economy’s ‘Silicon Valley’ • Recycling International

The Circular Valley initiative in Germany has launched a new round of funding to develop a ‘Silicon Valley of the circular economy’ in Europe. Founded by the Circular Valley Foundation in 2021, the initiative aims to close material loops in existing value chains, provide policy recommendations, and educate the public about the circular economy. Notable members of Circular Valley include BASF, Bayer, Evonik, Knipe, Vorwerk, and scientific institutions like Fraunhofer Umsicht Institute, Max Planck Society, and Wuppertal Institute.

More than 100 startups from around the world have been funded by Circular Valley, with the latest 15 coming from countries like Egypt, Chile, India, and various European nations. These start-ups will have the opportunity to spend three months in the Rhine-Ruhr region developing their business models starting in April. Throughout the programme, the start-up leaders will work with coaches and mentors, visit local companies, and network with industry professionals. The culmination of the funding programme will be a demonstration day on 28 May where the start-ups will present their ideas to an audience.

The current focus of the programme is on coordinating the value chain, exploring alternative raw materials and bioeconomy, and developing new techniques for chemical recycling. The most recent startups selected for funding cover a range of areas including coordinating the value chain (Agrona, Circulix, CL Circular, ContainerGrid, VGC.AI), alternative raw materials and bioeconomy (CarbonCraft, Circular Structures, Flower Matter, Upcyde), new technologies for chemical recycling (Radical Dot, Sustanix Materialtech, T-phite, Blue Plasmapower), and others (Qaptis, Waste to Wealth).