Sproudz is set to advance plant-based food innovation in the Bern district of Switzerland.
This unique hub will offer startups from the food industry rental space and facilities to produce their innovative plant-based products in the Swiss Municipality of Zollikofen. Additionally, Sproudz will provide joint services in procurement, quality management, logistics, and human resources. This initiative will enable startups to scale their business models cost-efficiently.
The fenaco cooperative supplies the infrastructure, aiming to promote Swiss agricultural raw materials and optimize by-product refinement from its processing plants.
Two startups from the Bern region have already committed to relocating their production operations to Zollikofen by late 2024. BakeryBakery AG, Switzerland’s first vegan bakery with a growing branch network, and Outlawz Food AG, a producer of plant-based meats, were instrumental in the project’s initiation and are among the first to join the hub.
Startups are invigorating the Swiss food industry with their innovative products, particularly in the niches of plant-based offerings and food upcycling, transforming by-products from the food industry into valuable foodstuffs. Many of these startups operate in production environments suitable for market entry but lack sufficient scaling options. Meanwhile, the industrial facilities necessary for efficient production are often underutilized by individual companies, leading to high operational costs.
Unique model in Switzerland
Startups at the Sproudz production hub benefit from shared production, warehouse, and office infrastructure wherever practical. Additionally, these young companies can access services such as procurement, quality management, and human resources based on their individual needs.
This combination of rentable space within a premium shell building, shared production facilities, and joint services is a first in Switzerland. To foster a collective interest in the hub’s success, the startups hold minority shares in the operating company, granting them significant influence over the hub’s management.
Kevin Schmid, founder and main owner of both companies, says: “We have grown very favourably. Now the next expansion steps are on the agenda. Sproudz offers us the ideal conditions for sustainable development. It doesn’t make sense for each start-up to set up its own, half-utilised production facility. Thanks to the hub, we can utilise cross-company synergies. This conserves resources and gives us a lot of flexibility. We can gradually adapt the required space to our needs and call on services that we lack.”
Michel Nick, who is responsible for innovation in the Food Industry Division, explains: “We want to use our network and our experience to close gaps in the domestic value chain. At the same time, we want to find solutions so that the cost structures of start-ups allow the use of raw materials from Swiss agriculture. Sproudz should make a contribution to this.”
Thanks to the cooperation with startups, fenaco also wants to better utilise the potential for refining side streams from its own production operations.
Further information: fenaco.com
