Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft

Fraunhofer Founder Award 2021

Disinfecting seeds safely and sustainably using electron treatment

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Winners of the Fraunhofer Founder Award: André Weidauer, Christian Süß and Ceravis partner Maik Schwarz (from left to right).

©  Photo: Fraunhofer / Piotr Banczerowski
 

Winners:

E-VITA GmbH

 

Chemical seed treatment rids seeds of fungi, viruses and bacteria. However, this comes at a high cost: The active agents used can also have harmful effects for farmers, the soil and the environment. On the other hand, electrons can be used to treat seeds in an environmentally friendly, sustainable and economical way − a method which helped the E-VITA GmbH start-up, a joint venture of the Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP and Ceravis AG, to win the Fraunhofer Founder Award for 2021.

Should we just sow seeds without treating them first? It would not be a very good idea. This is because fungi, viruses and bacteria are present on the seed husks, which would result in a drastic reduction in yield. Seed producers tackle these pathogens using chemical seed treatments. However, this has its own disadvantages: Since the treatment sticks to the seeds, the farmer ends up handling potentially dangerous material when sowing them − this could harm the farmer, the natural environment and the soil. Restrictions should curb the environmental dangers: In groundwater protection areas, treated seeds are off-limits. Moreover, they must not be sown in strong winds as the treatment agent and additives might drift away, meaning that seed waste is classified as hazardous waste. In addition, a number of fungicidal seed treatments have already been banned − where there were previously over 20 groups of fungicidal active ingredients, there are now few left. However, they are not entirely out of use − as a consequence, emergency and special approvals are used to authorize the remaining seed treatments for use each year.

Chemical free, sustainable and field-tested

E-VITA GmbH, which is a joint venture of Fraunhofer FEP and Ceravis AG, should soon put an end to this procedure: Instead of using treatments to remove fungi and the like from seeds, they are looking to accelerated electrons as a chemical-free, sustainable, field-tested and economical alternative. Fraunhofer Venture and High-Tech Gründerfonds also noticed the direct social benefits and awarded the Fraunhofer Founder Award to the start-up.

Fraunhofer Founder Award

The Fraunhofer Founder Award, which amounts to 5000 euros, was brought to life in 2015 as part of the holistic spin-off and investment strategy of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and is awarded in partnership with the High-Tech Gründerfonds. This honor is awarded to a successful spin-off that is active on the market and whose products and services have demonstrated direct benefits for society. For Fraunhofer Venture and High-Tech Gründerfonds, this award serves to honor outstanding Fraunhofer founders with innovative business ideas and to promote spin-off ventures within the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. Important criteria for this are the originality of the technology, high potential for innovation and the spin-off being established on the market. The winner is determined by a jury made up of internal and external experts.