Green tech: Alibaba-backed Hong Kong compostable tableware maker Ecoinno seeks US$48 million to expand capacity
- Ecoinno products are ‘disruptive’ because they are made from wholly plant-based materials, CEO says
- Firm confident about meeting the revenue and cash-flow requirements for a stock market listing by 2028
Ecoinno, a Hong Kong green-technology start-up, is seeking to raise US$48 million by the end of the year to fund its plant-based compostable containers factory, to meet a growing demand for such sustainable and disposable products.
Previously, launching climate-friendly plastic-free food containers and cutlery was challenging, since would-be customers balked at the higher costs involved, said Chen, a former textiles businessman.
In 2015, he co-founded Ecoinno with Alexander Bismarck, a German materials scientist who pioneered a method for producing a plant-based material that was sturdy, heat and cold-resistant, oil and waterproof, and fully compostable, together with colleagues from City University Hong Kong.
Bismarck transferred his intellectual property to Ecoinno, while Chen and partner Vivian Chang set up the supply chain to produce sustainable containers targeting the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics sectors.