When investing, your capital is at risk.
__
WASE is unlocking the power of waste to make it the fuel for the future. Co-founder and CEO Thomas Fudge came up with the idea whilst working in Ghana. He saw the impacts poor sanitation was having on children, many falling sick and missing school. The long-term impacts of this will cause many economic issues in the future.
80% of water is discharged untreated globally, and a large portion of the global population is likely to get sick through bacteria and infectious viruses that form in unclean water. In fact, 785 million people have no access to essential drinking water. According to the WHO, 2 billion people use a drinking water source contaminated with faeces.
On top of that, the average family wastes 180 gallons of water per week from household leaks. Over a year, that’s equivalent to 300 loads of laundry. This, combined with the lack of access to clean water, means that by 2025, half of the world’s population may be living in water-stressed areas.
Food waste is a different issue entirely. Annually, 10 million tonnes of food is thrown away, and supermarkets bin 240,000 tonnes per year. At home, we’re tipping 100 million pints of milk down the drain. Although some of this is unavoidable waste, most of the food wasted is perfectly edible. So not only is food being wasted, filling up landfills and filling the atmosphere with methane (which is 86 times more potent than CO2), we’re not getting the full benefits of what’s being produced either.
This is not a ‘they’ problem, this is everyone’s problem, and it’s up to audacious companies like WASE to build fast, efficient, and sustainable solutions. WASE is a London-based startup dedicated to eliminating the impact of food and water waste through their simple decentralised solution.
WASE works with food & beverage manufacturers including Hepworth, Hobsons and Forest Road Breweries to turn their unavoidable food and water waste into renewable energy. Their patent-pending electro-methanogenic process accelerates the breakdown of waste and produces hydrogen and methane. Their customers can implement an effortless plug and play solution into their operations and be a part of a circular economy.
For a while, the alternative solution was anaerobic digestion (AD). This sewage treatment process was invented to reduce the volume of sewage sludge and be a long-standing solution for years to come. However, it’s impractical due to space limitations. Not to mention the higher capital and operational costs for the equipment. To get as many waste-producing manufacturers on board, you’re going to need something that doesn’t break the bank and isn’t too complex to understand.
WASE’s systems work three times faster than AD and include the following:
- saniWASE: Decentralised sewage and faecal sludge treatment systems.
- industriWASE: Circular waste treatment solutions for food and drinks manufacturers.
- agriWASE: Advanced onsite treatment for agricultural waste.
With these systems in place all over the world, the future impact is undeniable. Less untreated water and less water wastage means that there’ll be greater access to clean water sources. The better the access, the less time people will need to spend physically collecting water, leading to better productivity. The healthier people are, the less strain on national health systems and the more a family can provide for themselves and/or their children.
We already know the Earth’s temperature is warming at a rapid rate, now more than ever, but how can we slow that down? Using WASE’s fast solutions, we’ll be able to reduce the amount of methane released into the atmosphere. We can give the next generation the same opportunities we had.
WASE is raising £1 million to grow their business and its impact. In the next 5 years, the team aims to install 1000 systems, generate 500GWh of renewable energy and save 140,000 tonnes of carbon. Given their impressive record so far – £700k in revenue, 2 patents pending, and being awarded 3 Innovate UK grants – we don’t see why they can’t.
If you are passionate about people and protecting the environment, you do not want to miss out on this opportunity to be a part of this forward-thinking company.
You can visit the pitch here.
Meet the founders of WASE here.
