Planterial receives Exist start-up grant

The start-up wants to develop sustainable building panels made of hemp. For this, the company is now being funded with 135,000 euros.

Planterial from Kiel receives the Exist-Gründerstipendium endowed with 135,000 euros, as announced by the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture Schleswig-Holstein. With the Exist-Gründerstipendium, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate supports young scientists in founding companies.

The founders Mika Siponen, Hannes Stuhr and Claudius von Thaler want to produce pressboard from rapidly renewable raw materials, such as hemp chips, which can be pressed together with a self-developed adhesive made from plant proteins. The boards should be able to be used for furniture construction, but also as a material for trade fair and interior design.

"Hemp wood and adhesive are biodegradable and can be recycled. With shrinking forest stocks and rising CO2 emissions, this is our answer," Siponen says. Crop hemp uses little water, requires no pesticides and has a good carbon footprint, he adds. The founders have already produced the first prototypes. Now, with the help of the founders' grant, the product is to be brought to market maturity and patented.