[LUM#17] Green innovation

[LUM Magazine] - Published on September 9, 2022 in Science-Society

Innovation for the environment also happens at home. In the garden with FlorAtlas, an app that makes gardening easier, or indoors with Transfarmers, which helps reduce waste with its flowerpot-compost bin.

Is gardening easy? "Not really," replies Emmanuel-Jean Servier. " Overcoming problems related to plant nomenclature, understanding soil characteristics, climate, and which plants are best suited to a given environment is extremely complex." To "demystify" all this, the former UM bioinformatics student is turning to digital technology. His idea? FlorAtlas, a company created in 2020 and incubated at AgroValo Méditerranée, but above all an app designed to help the general public simplify gardening by providing pre-processed scientific information.

Gardening 2.0

"The app uses geolocation to determine the climate, soil type, and water quality available to the user, and then suggests suitable plants," explains the entrepreneur. The selection can be refined using a range of filters. An example? You want a tree that bears edible fruit, has red flowers, and is safe for small children? FlorAtlas provides you with a list of all the plants that meet these criteria. "The app then directs you to producers in your area who sell it, " adds Manu the gardener.

A gardening facilitator that also anticipates future changes: "We take weather data into account, which will allow us to use fewer inputs and less water by offering plants that are better suited to the future climate, " explains the digital gardener and manager: "FlorAtlas wants to commit to an approach that limits the impact of digital technology." The app is not yet available for download because Covid has also disrupted the schedule, but gardening 2.0 is coming soon.

Flower pot – composter

And if you don't have a garden, green innovation can still find its place indoors with Transfarmers. A ceramic flower pot that doubles as... a composter. "A worm composter, to be precise. It transforms food scraps into compost thanks to the action of compost worms, " explains Louis Jamin.

With his four partners, three of whom are former students ofAgroParis Tech, he was looking for "an eco-friendly way to reduce waste at home. But we couldn't find a tool that was suitable for urban apartment dwellers." So they created one themselves. In 2019, they founded Transfarmers, another company incubated at the Institut Agro, which sells the famous flower pot/compost bin, "which has a real impact on the environment," says Louis Jamin. And the product, made in France by artisan potters, seems to have found its audience. "We've already sold 2,200 units and demand exceeds our current production capacity, " says the founder. The next ambition for Transfarmers is to develop new products to expand the range and aim for international growth. "We haven't found anything like our product on the market, so there's definitely a gap to fill."

Keywords: Environment, Innovation, LUM#17, LUM Magazine, Research, Company