Zoom In: BIOwayste, Organic Waste Treatment

The importance of our solution is its high efficiency, economical value, customizability, and ease of use.   

What They Do:  

BIOwayste helps commercial entities grow sustainable businesses by offering them a decentralized system to treat their organic waste on-site. The simple and natural biodegradation process produces biogas that is used as cooking gas and a biofertilizer used as a substitute for synthetic fertilizer.  

Startup Experience:  

“We decided to develop this solution because we knew that food waste is an emerging problem specifically in developing countries where the waste management process is stochastic and costly. The importance of our solution is its high efficiency, economical value, customizability, and ease of use.   

We applied to the Cleanergy Accelerator Program to get the exposure we need for our solution, to grow our knowledge in the different business and technical areas, and to access the funds we need to take our idea from research to the market.   

During the 9 months we spent in the program, we were able to validate our market after meeting with more than 40 local and international commercial entities. We performed the market sizing for Lebanon, the MENA region, and Europe, and completed our strategic business plan. We were able to build our prototype, test it and validate it, before designing and building our MVP which we are testing now. We were also able to create our brand identity, website, and social media presence.   

We have multiple key success factors: we’re offering a system that is highly efficient and beneficial for the customers as it saves them money on waste disposal, gas bills, and fertilizer. It’s also scalable, as it can be customized to address the needs of the customer.   

We’re very proud that in the last year we were able to apply and participate in 28 competitions, in addition to an incubator and an accelerator program, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. This shows how eager we are to reach our goals to launch and scale BIOwayste. However, the economic crisis and the Beirut blast have had a drastic impact on our progress. Commercial entities now have a limited budget and are struggling to survive. They are not ready to invest in a BIOwayste system, although it could be profitable for them within a short period.   

To counter this, we created payment facilities for local clients. However, to decrease our costs and increase our profitability, we are optimizing the system for local production and planning to expand to the MENA region.   

By the end of this year, we are looking to have 3 successful pilot-scale systems installed at three different entities. We want to be able to sell and install up to 10 units, seek partnerships with green associations and approach one strategic investor.” 

Learn more about Berytech’s Cleanergy Accelerator program.

Maria Chahine

Maria Chahine

Maria joined Berytech in May 2020 and is currently a Communication & Outreach Officer. She coordinates department activities, manages information, and facilitates internal operations within the Department of Communication and Outreach.

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