Do you want to disrupt the waste industry?

We might have something for you...
Three-month acceleration program for early-stage startups
Intensive collaboration with industry partners from the waste value chain
Funding, office space, experts and coaching
Broad media coverage provided by us and the Handelsblatt
Batch starts May each year
Hybrid (based in Frankfurt, Germany)
Apply for the upcoming batch

Our approach: innovating through the entire value chain

Supplier
Packaging & Machinery
Raw Materials
Retail
Consumption
Waste Management & Recycling
Distribution
Raw Materials
Supplier
Production / Manufacturing
Distribution
Retail
Consumption
Waste Management/Recycling
Raw Materials
Supplier
Production/
Manufacturing
Distribution
Retail
Consumption
Waste Management & Recycling

Our network

Premium Partner
‍

Program Partners

Initiators

Your benefits of joining THE MISSION...

Startups
Corporates

A total package, worth +100.000 EUR

10.000 EUR funding for your start-up
Individual coachings by Bain & Company (business), Osborne Clarke (legal), e:fs TechHub GmbH (data), WSL Patentanwälte (IP) and many more
Media campaign and package provided by Handelsblatt Media Group (exclusive featuring, advertorial and more)
Office space in Frankfurt and fully-fledged three-month acceleration program
Matching with great team-members from our talent-pool, if you are looking for additional support

Priceless:

Close collaboration with 10+ corporate partners from the whole value chain
Apply here
Start-up and technology scouting: Access to the most relevant start-ups in your industry (report and longlist)
Collaboration and piloting with selected start-ups within the program
Holistic solution development together with industry players from the whole value chain
Holistic solution development together with industry players from the whole value chain
Industry insights: Co-publisher of the "Trend Radar", co-host of the "Sustainable Innovation Day", participation at "THE MISSION Summit"
Talent acquisition: Find your new employees within out talent pool consisting of more than 4.000 young talented people through dedicated formats
Join here

Key dates for THE MISSION Waste

Application Deadline

27.02.2023

You have an idea that fits into the value chain and innovation fields? Or you like to contribute to an idea? Then apply!
Demo Day

24.03.2023

The best ten teams pitch in front of a jury (consisting of the participating corporate partners). Together we select the most promising five teams who will start the program.
Kick-off Event

05.05.2023

The program is launched with our big kick-off event with all participating corporate partners and teams.
Interim Event

15.06.2023

The program is launched with our big kick-off event with all participating corporate partners and teams.
Final Event

27.07.2023

In a big final pitch the teams will present the final results and have the opportunity to negotiate follow-on options with the partners.

Our highlights & success stories

Recyda

Recyda is the first global recyclability assessment tool. Recyda collects and centralises information about the composition of packaging in a software tool, so that the recyclability of packaging for different target markets can be easily assessed. This will increase the distribution of recyclable packaging promoted.
Get to their website

Circolution

Circolution is developing a scalable system for reusable packaging of food from all segments. The system is designed to save resources, meet consumer needs and offer food producers the opportunity to grow in new and sustainable target group segments. The business model includes the leasing of packaging, including its return and cleaning.
Get to their website

Sliceomat

Sliceomat is an automatic sausage slicer for e.g. supermarkets without fresh food service counters to reduce plastic packaging in the refrigerated section. Out of the program the team registered a patent with Weber Maschinenbau.

InnoBlock

InnoBlock is a database-driven mobile app that shows ecologically relevant properties about products and communicates them to the customer.

Scrapp

Scrapp is a purpose-led platform on a mission to reduce global waste - by helping people to recycle correctly. They believe that small actions can, and do, make all the difference. Collectively – one plastic bottle, cardboard box, or milk carton at a time – we can build a more sustainable future where our most precious resources are reused more and wasted less. Join today!
Get to their website

besserbox

besserbox is the standardized reusable system for dry food in food retail.

FlexSea

FlexSea is a sustainable-packaging company aiming to replace traditional petroleum plastic film with an innovative natural material derived from seaweed. Their transparent, resistant material is degradable in marine, soil and home-composting environments and is also edible.
Get to their website

cu Mehrwegsystem

cu Mehrwegsystem creates a scalable and open pool system with a standardized PP container that can be seamlessly integrated into the German deposit system and existing logistics processes. 
Get to their website

Ceres

Filling material based on straw is 100 compostable and plastic free since their main component is a by product of agriculture and manufacturing is done through a smart bonding of standard machines, costs are kept low. Thus, their product yet is competitive and highly scalable.
Go their website

How THE MISSION works

With THE MISSION Waste, we connect top startups with leading companies and experts from the industry to jointly work on sustainable solutions of tomorrow. THE MISSION Waste offers four solutions:

Accelerator Program

Co-develop and test new and sustainable business models with leading industry partners and selected early-stage start-ups.

Talent Matching

Get access to a constantly growing pool of +4.600 talents and start-ups to position yourself in the industry or to find your next co-founder.

Media & Events

Position your company/startup as an industry leader/disruptive change maker through our year-around media campaign, trend radars and corporate networking events.

Sustainability Challenger

Challenge your sustainability programs and activities with partners across the value chain.

Incubation Program

Co-develop and test new and sustainable business models with leading industry partners and selected early-stage start-ups.

Talent Matching

Get access to >4.600 talents and start-ups to position yourself in the industry or to find your next co-founder.

Media & Events

Position your company/startup as an industry leader/disruptive change maker through our year-around media campaign, trend radars and corporate networking events.

Sustainability Challenger

Challenge your sustainability programs and activities with partners across the value chain.

Our Focus Topics for 2023:

Reduce
Reuse
Recycle
Reset

THE MISSION: Podcast

Interested how we tackle sustainability and economics in our program THE MISSION? We produce different podcasts to exactly those topics – Check them out!

THE MISSION: Media

On more than 90 pages, the Handelsblatt Trend Radar report analyses the recycling industry's sustainable approaches contributing to the reduction of plastic waste and the development of alternative packaging solutions.

Read the latest Trendradar here, get industry insights through the interviews with market-leading corporates here or read the Trendradar from 2019 here.

THE MISSION: YouTube

Check out our teams out of our first batch of THE MISSION waste.