Congratulations to the Education Start-up Award Winners !
Recognising our students, graduates and professionals from EIT Labelled programmes, who have developed a start-up, addressing key challenges in the food system. We are proud to announce the 10 Awards of each 4 000€.
The Initiative, eligibility criteria & evaluation process
The EIT Food Education Start-up Award celebrates the entrepreneurial achievements of students and alumni from EIT Food Education programmes.
The initiative recognises students, graduates and professionals who have developed a start-up addressing key challenges in the food system. To recognise the most promising entrepreneurial journeys, EIT Food did grant up to 10 awards of €4,000 each to the most successful startups created by EIT Food Education participants and Alumni.
Participants submitting their applications had to adhere to the following criteria :
1. Be a student or graduate of one of the EIT Food Education programmes, being currently enrolled or having completed one of the EIT Food Education courses that carry the EIT label.
2. Have created a start-up during their participation in an EIT Food Education programme, or within 3 years of graduation. To be eligible, the start-up must be registered and have proof of a first financial transaction for a service/product sold to a customer.
3. Provide supporting documents, such as registration certificate of the start-up (year N), proof of first financial transaction, such as an invoice or online sales record and a start-up description form.
All entries were evaluated by an EIT Food Evaluation Committee against the four core criteria:
- Innovation – originality of the solution, degree of technological or business model novelty, and contribution to solving food system challenges.
- Entrepreneurial Journey – demonstrated traction such as first sales, partnerships, or pilot projects but also resilience to pitfalls and setbacks.
- Impact – contribution to environmental, social, and/or health challenges in food systems.
- Scalability and Growth Potential – potential of the startup to expand its operations, markets, or customer base.
10 selected Winners, each receiving 4 000€
On 10 December 2025, we announced the 10 Award Winners and outstanding Start-up Founders !
- Dilara Üzünlü – Tech2Biology
- Marc Steger – Kasoda
- Stefania Malfatti – Behavix
- Anabel Millán Leiva – Cucare
- Stamatis Diavatidis – farmAIr
- Yinusa Yakubu Temitope – FarmCI
- Abdul Keeri – BiodairyLabs
- Viola Bonesu – Plino
- Alex Nemyrovskyi – Uasilica
- Canan Tiryaki – Vegg Foods
Dilara Üzünlü – Tech2Biology
Tech2Biology develops AI-powered smart beehive technologies that combine sensor fusion, IoT connectivity, and deep learning to protect pollinators and strengthen global food security. Our integrated system monitors temperature, humidity, sound, CO₂, and honey purity in real time to detect diseases, stress, and environmental threats up to 85% earlier than manual methods.
Marc Steger – Kasoda
Kasoda is a Germany-based food innovation start-up founded by Marc Steger and Nadia Schweizer.
The company is dedicated to transforming coffee by-products into sustainable, high-quality beverages and aims to create a circular, transparent, and fair coffee economy.
The idea for Kasoda originated from Marc Steger’s master’s thesis on coffee leaves, completed within the Master of Food Systems program at EIT Food.
Building on this academic foundation, the founders explored the broader potential of coffee by-products, leading to the development of the company’s first product: a naturally caffeinated, low-sugar beverage made from the coffee cherry (cascara), a by-product of coffee production recently approved as a novel food in the EU.
Stefania Malfatti – Behavix
Behavix is an innovative startup and benefit corporation that combats and prevents food waste in collective and chain catering by analyzing what remains on the plate.
We combine AI, behavioral insights, and user engagement to identify the real causes of waste and translate them into preventive actions, reducing costs, improving service quality, and guiding more sustainable food choices.
Anabel Millán Leiva – Cucare
Cucare Diagnostics is a biotechnology company dedicated to preventing insect-related losses in the agri-food sector.
Through our advanced molecular diagnostic services, we enable producers to transition from reactive to preventive management, contributing to greater sustainability, productivity, and economic efficiency across agri-food production systems.
Stamatis Diavatidis – farmAIr
farmAIr is a Plant Stress Management company delivering patented, AI-powered technology for the early and accurate detection of biotic and abiotic plant stress before symptoms expression.
Our system operates at leaf-level precision and has been validated across high-value crops, primarily vineyards.
Yinusa Yakubu Temitope – FarmCI
FarmCI is a food technology startup transforming how agricultural produce is preserved and valued in Nigeria.
We use mobile-enabled, solar-powered Modular freeze-drying hubs to help farmers and food vendors extend the shelf life of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and protein products — preserving 97% of nutrients without refrigeration.
Our model combines product sales and preservation services. Farmers can either bring their produce for processing or order full outsourcing, while consumers can purchase FarmCI-branded dried foods through our mobile platform.
Each hub operates as a lean, data-driven micro-factory, providing accessible preservation services and connecting users to verified buyers.
FarmCI’s approach is decentralized and scalable. Through a franchise model, we aim to deploy multiple mobile hubs across Nigeria and eventually other African markets, each operated by local entrepreneurs using our technology and systems.
Abdul Keeri – BiodairyLabs
In October 2022, I joined the Entrepreneurship in a Nutshell course, which opened the door to the EIT Food Alumni community and FoodHive network.
Through these connections, I gained invaluable mentorship, insights, and confidence to transform my scientific ideas into a viable business concept.
The journey continued with several EIT Food programs — Inspire Explore in December 2022, NPD Skills in December 2023, and advanced training sessions in March and May 2024. Each course strengthened my technical expertise and business acumen, helping me grow not just as a scientist, but as an entrepreneur with vision and purpose.
With continuous support from the EIT Food ecosystem and its vibrant network of experts, I founded BioDairy Labs, a startup dedicated to developing the next generation of sustainable, plant-based fats.
What began as a scientific curiosity has now evolved into a global vision , a company with the ambition to reshape the future of food and sustainability.
BioDairy Labs stands today as a testament to the power of collaboration, innovation, and the courage to turn research into real-world solutions.
Viola Bonesu – Plino
Plino simplifies financial and economical data analysis for SMEs, connecting invoices, banks, and transactions to deliver clear, real-time insights on costs, revenues, and cash flow.
Used across sectors—including hospitality and food—it helps businesses optimize resources, costs, understand how they're spending and earning, and make smarter, more informed decisions.
Alex Nemyrovskyi – Uasilica
UASILICA creates cutting-edge and eco-friendly recycling technologies to pull out critical raw materials silica and metals from agricultural and energy plants waste using it for adsorbent manufacturing.
Canan Tiryaki – Vegg Foods
At Vegg Foods, we transform broken chickpeas — an often overlooked byproduct — into innovative plant-based egg alternatives and high-value by-products such as hummus flour and hummus sauce, following a zero-waste circular model.
Our journey started with the EIT Food RIS Sustainable Food Production and Consumption programme, where we first developed the core idea. From New Product Development to EIT Food EWA, Jumpstarter, Jumpstarter NEXT, Seedbed, and finally Straight2Market, EIT Food has supported us at every stage of our growth.
Over the past months, we conducted extensive market research across multiple countries, allowing us to test our products directly with consumers and identify key revisions in texture, flavor, and shelf-life stability.
These insights have strengthened our market readiness and product quality.