The Circular Economy Incubation Program’s second cohort fosters innovation and sustainable solutions to critical environmental challenges with grant support and capacity building for 10 startups

The Nadathur S Raghavan Centre for Entrepreneurial Learning (NSRCEL) at IIM Bangalore, in collaboration with the Pernod Ricard India Foundation (PRIF), has completed the second cohort of its Circular Economy Incubation Program. This program, which focuses on fostering innovation in climate-smart agriculture, plastic circularity, alternate materials, and green tech, has provided vital support to a range of promising startups, as per a press release.

The incubation, which began in September 2024, provided grant support to 10 startups, with additional funding allocated to two top-performing ventures. Beyond financial assistance, the program offered startups valuable capacity-building sessions on various critical topics, including sales strategies, go-to-market approaches, working capital management, pricing strategies, valuation, market linkages, and impact measurement within the circular economy.

Anand Sri Ganesh, CEO of NSRCEL, highlighted the program’s significance, stating, “Through our strategic partnership, NSRCEL and PRIF remain committed to supporting circular economy startups by fostering innovation and creating ideal conditions for scaling. This cohort’s focus on Climate-Smart Agriculture and Plastic Circularity tackles urgent challenges, and inspires us to delve deeper into some of these themes with a long-term ecosystem lens.”

Gagandeep Singh Sethi of PRIF echoed this commitment, noting, “At Pernod Ricard India, we are committed to supporting innovative solutions that address critical environmental challenges. Our partnership with NSRCEL in the circular economy incubation program highlights this commitment to fostering sustainable practices. The work of these startups on climate-smart agriculture and plastic circularity is truly inspiring, and we are excited to see their contribution and impact.”

The ventures supported in this cohort include Apratima Biosolutions, VAPAC Bio-plastics, Greenovate Solutions, Centre for Grower-centric Eco-value Mechanisms, GoFig, VGFS Technologies Private Limited, Rechain Technologies Private Limited, Agrozee Organics Pvt Ltd, Mavron Tech, and Unbubble. Since November 2024, these startups have collectively collected, upcycled, or recycled over 900,000 kg of waste, preventing the generation of 150,000 kg of new waste and creating over 160 direct livelihoods, said the press release.