people are precious.
why.
From a social point of view, we aim to improve the quality of life for cocoa farmers by creating new business opportunities, adding another source of income, and strengthening capabilities by harnessing the full potential of agricultural waste.
From an environmental aspect, the materials we create contribute to lowering the ecological footprint by reducing CO2 emissions from agricultural composting, and minimizing contaminating phenols that deteriorate the quality, texture and mineral content of the soil.
From an economic perspective, transforming a linear system of production (extract, produce, consume, discard) into a circular system yields effectiveness, generates growth, minimizes the energy input required, and maximizes the retention of value along the production chain.
Finally, from a biotechnology point of view, being able to generate complex chemical processes under room temperature entails low environmental impact. The organisms, resources, and necessary components are available from the croplands and the agricultural waste.
bio-based circular materials
are a sustainable alternative for the future.
we are devoted to designing the future NOW.
team.
We are an interdisciplinary team that joined together to face a wide range of design problems at different scales: urban and territory, architecture and interior design in commercial and domestic spaces and product design and fabrication, with ample approach from experimentation to materialization.
Inspired by design driven innovation, our members are constantly searching for updates related with trends, processes, methodologies and tools. We merge the professional practice with the academic world as design lecturers, since we believe in the importance of creating a deep design culture environment and invest in human talent.
Our team members have had design experience locally (Ecuador) and abroad in Italy, Spain and Mexico.
CLAUDIA
ARCHITECT
Claudia Valverde is an Architect specialized in Industrial Design for Architecture who works as a freelancer professional and design lecturer. Her passion is to enhance the design results through contemporary theories, methods and instruments.
LUCA
ARCHITECT
Luca Franzetti is an architect who graduated from Polytechnic of Milan, specialized in interethnic urban planning. Passionate about researching and applying the principles of complexity theory as a vehicle to interpret contemporary society to produce coherent design proposals.
CARLA
PRODUCT DESIGNER
Carla Anderson is a Product Designer who graduated from ELISAVA Barcelona (master's degree), specializing in visual merchandising and art direction. She has developed the ability to understand customer requirements to offer creative, effective, and innovative solutions.
DAVID
PRODUCT & GRAPHIC DESIGNER
David Granizo is an Industrial and Graphic Designer who works with a multidisciplinary collective of professionals in architectural and product design projects based on user centered development.
collaborators.
MATTEO
ANTHROPOLOGIST
Matteo Lussiana is an anthropologist, responsible for different Italian NGOs in Latin America, working for the past 8 years in Ecuador, Colombia, Uruguay and Peru. He has carried out anthropological research of "participating observation".
ANA
VISUAL & COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGIST
Ana Arroyo is a graphic designer and strategic communications consultant. She loves photography, illustration and traveling, designing infographics and brands.
MIGUEL
BUSINESS COACH
Miguel Villagómez Najas is a strategist and business model innovator that collaborates with CEOs and entrepreneurs to create, capture and deliver greater value for their clients, reinventing their products, services, processes, and capabilities.
case study.
" A circular economy is one that is restorative and regenerative by design and aims to keep products, components, and materials at their highest utility and value at all times, distinguishing between technical and biological cycles." (Ellen MacArthur Foundation)
with that in mind, this is our plan.
find out how you can contribute and where you could fit!
cocoa farmer
small and large cocoa growers in search of increasing their business profitability and implementing sustainable farming practices.
investor
all those interested in seeking profitability driven by sustainability as a key to future development.
chocolate companies, manufacturing industry, NGOs, universities, research centers, venture capital funds, angel investors.
kajkāo
group of designers, architects and researchers who provide the know-how and technical training along the value chain.
collection center
associations and/or companies that concentrate the collection of the cocoa fruit for its fermentation and drying process and seek to generate added value to the initial stages of preparation of the material.
new material manufacturer
manufacturers that have the capacity to produce materials to scale.
industry
companies within the chain of production of cocoa and its derivatives.
consumer
all those who enjoy chocolate and products derived from cocoa, consumers who seek environmentally friendly products.
• CARE & AWARENESS
awareness of the social and environmental footprint the production chain.
• PROCESSED BIOMATERIAL
biomaterials with potential to be used in various industries: fashion, architecture, medicine.
• PREPARED RAW MATERIAL
agricultural waste is prepared to be used as raw material for manufacturing biomaterials.
• FINAL PRODUCT
productos, packaging or objetcts made from biomaterials.
• AGRICULTURAL WASTE
recovered from different stages throughout the production chain. harvest, post harvest and industrial process.
• KNOWLEDGE & TOOLS
knowledge transfer for the development of new materials. new sources of income in the value chain.
• INFLUENCE
acknowledgement, reputation, network.
• RESOURCES
financial, scientific, know how, research, technological, human, academic resources.
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our drive.
we seek to transform a part of the cocoa harvesting process, overlooked so far, and make it profitable by using the pod and adding value by transforming it into new biodegradable, compostable and sustainable material; fostering better living conditions for cocoa farmers
and their communities in return.
by strengthening capabilities and through collection centers, we seek to achieve semi-finished products to market and generate additional income that directly benefits each farmer.
we aim to reduce and balance the environmental and social footprint cocoa downstream market.
we want to promote responsible consumption and offer high-quality goods by closing the chocolate production cycle.
we wish to pioneer the knowledge transfer towards a circular economy in the cocoa sector in Ecuador.