A tech startup has created a Bloomberg-style trading platform to support a range of sectors in Scotland with their net zero and sustainability goals, simplifying transactions intended to see that the organic waste from one industry become another’s gold.
Edinburgh-based Vaste is currently collaborating with computing science experts from Edinburgh College, on an Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) funded project, to prepare its software for launch to commercial buyers and sellers later this year. Bio-based feedstocks such as food processing side streams, waste oils and fats, agricultural residues, forestry by-products and co-products from the whisky and brewery industry can be traded through the platform, opening up opportunities across the Scottish bioeconomy.
Many of the target buyers will use these materials as alternatives to petrochemical-derived feedstocks for energy generation, production of biofuels, chemical manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals. Vaste is already in talks with potential industrial buyers who intend to use the tool to procure several thousand tonnes of used cooking oils and waste potatoes for biofuel plants.
The startup’s platform is designed to provide trust and transparency for companies with an interest in the circular bioeconomy in a never-before-seen manner, and builds on previous work carried out by IBioIC, Scottish Enterprise and Zero Waste Scotland to map out the availability of bio-based feedstocks for early-stage decision-making via the Scottish Bioresource Mapping Tool.
Currently, there is no other system that can connect businesses producing these residues with interested parties who can turn them into high-value, sustainable products and processes.
As well as supporting trades, the platform will provide real-time market insights, data analytics, and automated compliance features that will support industrial buyers and sellers to digitise key information about the materials they are trading, including data on environmental performance, carbon footprint tracking, as well as sustainability reporting. Together, this unique suite of services is critical to the development of robust, reliable supply chains necessary to support the rapidly developing Scottish bioeconomy.
To support the platform’s development, Vaste has also received funding through the Scottish Inward Investment Catalyst Fund and was recently accepted into Sustainable Ventures’ Powering the Future accelerator programme for SMEs in climate tech.
Evans Chelal, founder and chief executive of Vaste, said: “Many of the UK’s bio-based industries are reliant on imports of feedstocks, which need not be the case. The demand for the kinds of organic waste materials we are looking at exists locally, but the supply chains are either nascent or completely undeveloped. Industrial buyers don’t necessarily have the transparent connections or effective tools to access these materials. This is where our platform comes in – bridging the gap between supply and demand.
“Vaste’s mission is to build greater resilience across a range of supply chains to ensure bio-based industries have steady and consistent access to raw materials. We’re essentially creating the infrastructure that will support Scotland’s transition to a bioeconomy. Working with Edinburgh College has provided a significant boost for our technical capabilities, and we are actively recruiting from their exceptional pool of software engineers as we ramp up development and prepare to launch our feedstock trading platform.”
Kim Cameron, senior business engagement manager at IBioIC, added: “Vaste’s platform has the potential to become a core element of how the bioeconomy in Scotland, and the rest of the UK, develops in the years to come. Access to market insights and the ability to reliably procure feedstocks will provide companies with an additional level of confidence to invest in bio-based products and processes, as well as reassurance that the supply chain exists to support their business model. We are excited to see the software launched and look forward to seeing it grow as more buyers and sellers engage and begin to trade via the platform.”
Jorge Correia, senior Lecturer in computing at Edinburgh College, added: “Our collaboration with Vaste on this platform directly tackles a major hurdle in the bioeconomy: the scarcity of transparent, accessible supply chains for sustainable feedstocks. From day one, our goal has been to build an intelligent infrastructure that seamlessly links suppliers and buyers, enabling confident choices and fostering significant growth. Edinburgh College’s involvement in a system with such tangible real-world impact demonstrates the power of our partnership with Vaste and the immense value of industry-academic collaborations in driving innovation throughout Scotland’s burgeoning bio-based economy.”