Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. HOMEPAGE

A startup made sustainable 'seed' paper that grows into trees when planted

Sheedo paper seed paper
Gonzalo Mestre was a university student looking at innovating sustainable espadrilles with a partner when he came across plantable seed paper. Sheedo Paper / YouTube

  • Spanish startup Sheedo developed a type of "seed paper" that can be planted to grow new plants.
  • The paper, made of waste cotton from the textile industry, doesn't require tree-felling or bleaching.
  • It's a 100% sustainable product and it ends up germinating into a plant at the end of its life.
Advertisement

A Spanish startup named Sheedo developed a type of "seed paper" that can be planted to grow new plants.

Made from residual cotton from the textile industry, Sheedo's seed paper doesn't require trees to be cut down nor does it involve toxic bleaching — it's a 100% sustainable product and it ends up germinating into a plant at the end of its life.

"We want to give disposable paper a new lease of life," explained Gonzalo Mestre, CEO of Sheedo.

Considering all its team members are below the age of 25, some might say Sheedo did impressively to persuade the likes of Telefónica and Coca-Cola to get on board with their product, a "seed paper" that can be planted in order to put an end to single-use paper.

Advertisement

The idea eventually evolved and the startup diversified to the point where Sheedo offers products like a "sowing" kit, earth pills, and plantable chocolates.

However, the road has been a long one, demanding constant innovation, reinvention, and problem-solving.

The product was fraught with risk and uncertainty

Gonzalo Mestre was a university student looking at innovating sustainable espadrilles with a partner when he came across plantable seed paper. Although the product he stumbled on couldn't be printed let alone marketed, Mestre "fell in love with the concept".

Making paper Sheedo
Sheedo's paper is made from residual cotton from the textile industry that does not involve felling trees or using toxic bleaching. Sheedo Paper / YouTube

From that moment, the partners had a vision for how they might shape a product but had almost no information on how it would work, so they asked themselves: "what if we just do it?"

Advertisement

The first obstacle to overcome was to get the paper printed without destroying the seed. At the beginning, they were strongly tempted to throw in the towel: "if no one is doing it, it's because it can't be done" was what they thought to themselves at one point, according to Mestre.

But then they found someone who could, Antonio Sardá, a Catalonian expert in paper-making with a career spanning over 40 years. In conjunction with the Sheedo team, he found an exact formula to create a paper capable of holding chamomile seeds, that could later germinate. The next challenge would be to find customers. Initially, Mestre thought his product was perfect for florists.

sheedo team
The Sheedo Team. Sheedo

"None of them wanted it," he recalled. "We worried we'd managed to produce a product only to find it didn't fit in the market".

They decided to focus on companies that sold organic products and the strategy paid off: "We ended this year with clients like Coca-Cola," said Mestre. As well as Coca-Cola, their products are already used by companies such as Danone, Forbes, Oysho and, Massimo Dutti.

Advertisement

The young entrepreneurs started printing the paper from their office themselves as orders arrived. They already collaborate with experts but the printers have had to be modified to adapt to their paper and to retain the seed.

Young, no technical knowledge but experts in innovation

According to Mestre, the lack of technical knowledge was "one of the biggest hurdles" — they had no idea about botany, stationery, or printing, but "we surrounded ourselves with experts who did, and made sure we understood what was going wrong".

At 21 years old, Mestre was the eldest member of the team at the start of the project, which initially didn't inspire much confidence in Sheedo's clients. However, the novelty of the product won them over.

The startup started diversifying, making wedding invitations and gift cards. In general, it's hard to garner loyalty with the product.

Advertisement
sheedo seed paper
The idea has evolved and diversified to the point where a 'sowing kit', 'earth pills', and 'plantable chocolates' are now among the products Sheedo offers. Sheedo Paper / YouTube

"As the product is about novelty, customers tend not to come back," admits Mestre. The company has therefore redoubled its efforts to diversify its range and have thus managed to get several companies to choose them again.

Their philosophy is all about sustainability and social impact

Sheedo sets itself apart with its good business practices — it's a handmade product with national suppliers and manufacturers.

"There's a very important detail when it comes to how our products are made," added Mestre, going on to explain that they collaborated with Ami 3, an association that employs people with disabilities, to help produce their handmade paper.

Whether Sheedo expands as an agency for sustainable products or continues with its seed paper remains to be seen. Looking to the future, they are considering "not only working with products, but designing sustainable campaigns" according to Mestre.

Advertisement

"We may not be expert paper manufacturers or printers," he said, " but we're good as a supplier of sustainable products and we're good at innovating."

Read the original article on Business Insider España. Copyright 2021.

This post has been translated from Spanish.

Follow Business Insider España on Twitter.
Sustainability Tech Startup
Advertisement
Close icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. It indicates a way to close an interaction, or dismiss a notification.

Jump to

  1. Main content
  2. Search
  3. Account