Central and Eastern Europe is a cradle of brilliant initiatives in the food sector and, in particular, many early stage business ideas need to be tested and guided in their development to make a significant impact on the industry. University of Warsaw is the leading research university in Poland, and one of the most active supporters of entrepreneurial initiatives in the country, including through multiple EIT Food programmes. We leverage our competences to coordinate the Warsaw Hub of EIT Food Seedbed, providing training, mentoring and financial support to startup teams participating in the programme. In Warsaw Hub of EIT Food Seedbed, we work with startups from Central and Eastern European countries.
There is no other program that can put a small startup team in contact with Tier 1 global brands like Pepsico or Givadaun to discuss R&D development potential. If I were to name a single value out of Seedbed this would be access to best in class food brands. Other than that, expect you will be pushed out of your comfort zone to verify your idea all over Europe and beyond in under 3 months. We had over 150 conversations that improved our understanding of customer needs and as a result, updated our value proposition.
Maciej Majewski - MEGenzymes
The Seedbed program gave us the necessary push and tools to engage and develop tens of new relationships with customers, partners, and suppliers. The program opened many doors to critical conversations that shaped our business. True to its name, Seedbed nourished PlattenBaum to its next growth phase.
Kerem Halbrecht - PlattenBaum
It was a great decision for our team to participate in the EIT Food Seedbed program in 2021! Our experience with Seedbed's market discovery journey has helped us get connected with our target customers and partners, which has defined our business model and understand better the gaps in the market. The 6-month program has prepared our team going to the next round of fundraising.
Mary Grace Gasco - SpaceCrop Technologies