24 August 2022
“The Greenhouse Accelerator Program has given us the opportunity to gain knowledge otherwise difficult to obtain and has advanced our ambitions to become changemakers in the recycling sector.”
Many startup founders initially believed that the most important aspect of founding a company is funding the company. I was definitely one of them, until I realized there is much more to founding and running a company than money. First you need a springboard to your ideas — a partner, and everything else can follow. What goes hand-in-hand with this, are sector based tailored programs that help build capacities, and eventually help you access funding.
This is why we applied to the Greenhouse Accelerator Program: MENA edition – a sector-specific program that is helping tap into resources and advance our innovation, allowing us to leave a mark in the region’s recycling sector. The initial grant and the mentorship program delivered by the PepsiCo Greenhouse Accelerator, which is a blend of modules delivered bi-weekly and an assigned mentor to our company, has given us the opportunity to gain specific knowledge otherwise difficult to access.
Our startup focuses on recycling Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and turning it into hollow fiber – the low-hanging fruit of recycled PET products. Being an industrial company focused on machine fabrication with a specialization in the environmental sector, we’re not only focused on the recycling process, but also designing and manufacturing the production line ourselves. PET is one of the main packaging materials used for bottled beverages and various other products in the region. Currently, Jordan does not recycle PET and large amounts of waste end up in landfills. While food-grade recycling is not yet approved in Jordan, our recycling technology will allow us to repurpose various products from the waste PET. Some of these products include hollow fiber, yarn, and eventually textile, which is used by multinational brands regionally and globally.
Our region has only recently started tapping into the huge potential of recycling and applying circular economy concepts. So, recycled products are not widely perceived as valuable, which makes marketing and sales challenging.
The startup ecosystem in the region has been very focused on the tech sector and access to resources for startups in other sectors has been limited. As the public sector works to close the unemployment gap, it is in their interest to support startups who have the potential to scale and make more employment opportunities available for a growing population.
Our ambitions to become pioneers in the recycling sector requires collaborative efforts. We believe that knowledge sharing and partnerships will prove to be a win-win for all entities involved. Our company has benefitted immensely from the collaboration with PepsiCo through the Greenhouse Accelerator Program – primarily from the knowledge needed for product positioning and pricing, information on certification requirements and implementation tools, as well as physical production of our machine that produces the hollow fiber.
We aspire to become key innovators in the recycling sector and solve current and future challenges with local resources and know-how. We are here to stay and make a positive difference for local and global communities.
Amina Mari – Founder & CEO