When biowaste meets fine taste

Ardra S Nair’s Greenamor Ventures makes cosmetic, food and pharma containers from coir fibre waste
When biowaste meets fine taste

KOCHI: Ardra S Nair, 28, is a one-woman army heading a unique startup named Greenamor Ventures that develops eco-friendly designer containers out of coir fibre waste. Based at Haripad in Alappuzha, Greenamor is all set to undergo validation in December for the official market launch next year. An excited Ardra believes this is the first time that a commercial product has been made from coir fibre waste.

Notably, Greenamor was recently chosen as one of the three non-IT startups chosen for the national Biotechnology Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) grants of Rs 5 lakh, on the basis of generating value-added products from waste and natural resources.

Co-founded with Ardra’s sister and silent partner Shilpa S Nair, Greenamor was incorporated in 2021 with the aim of providing sustainable alternatives to single-use plastic. “Our products include coir-waste containers that can be used in the cosmetic, food and pharma industries,” says Ardra. “Greenamor will also be launching flexible tubes for containing toothpaste and skin creams.”

Ardra says the startup idea took root when she did MTech at Government Barton Hill Engineering College in Thiruvananthapuram two years ago. “Since I was focusing on translation engineering, my tutor, Suja R, encouraged me to think out of the box,” she recalls.

“So I decided to do a two-month internship course at T.U. Delft university in the Netherlands, and that was a life-changing experience. There, I was part of a student start-up. At that time, my focus was on the production of bio-ethanol from water hyacinth. The research and development on this helped me take part in the BIRAC meet.”

Subsequently, she used the BIRAC funding of Rs 5 lakh as capital for Greenamor’s R&D. “I strongly believe in the potential of value-addition to bio waste,” says Ardra. “Alappuzha is known for its traditional coir industry. With more than 15 coir-mat manufacturing units, 80 tonnes of coir fibre waste goes to landfills. Greenamor recycles the waste and converts it into mouldable pellets that can be converted into different products.”

Ardra adds the prototype is ready, and that she has tied up with manufacturers in Gujarat to release the product. “Of course, I have already discussed with cosmetic companies in Kerala so as to ensure the finished product hits the market soon,” she says.

Fortnightly segment on unique startup stories

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