EnGreDi

Innovative approach to using moss for environmental health and sustainability

EnGreDi wants to use mosses to contribute to the health of the local and global environment by capitalising on a number of unique properties: moss is a plant that purifies the air and needs little to survive.

EnGreDi chose moss because research has shown that mosses offer more benefits compared to other plants. To name just a few: one hectare of moss captures about seven times more CO2 than one hectare of forest and moss removes 2.3 times more particulate matter from the air than ivy and even 93.3 times more than succulents. As a result, more and more mosses are being robbed from our natural areas, which should be avoided at all costs.

With financial support from VLAIO and scientific support from Ghent University, EnGreDi developed a crop cultivation process based on In Vitro and In Vivo biotechnology. This method is not only flexible and easy to scale up, but also makes the moss grow faster.

This cultivation is started from the EnGreDi moss bank, without having to tap natural resources. The moss mats produced can be placed on roofs, facades and in gardens or landscapes. But can also be used as botanical filters in air conditioning units, initially for interior applications, and later for outdoor locations with high air pollution.

EnGreDi focuses on social and economic impact as well as the environment. The triple bottom line, people-planet-profit, means that EnGreDi provides an inclusive, comfortable workplace where colleagues help, motivate and support each other. At the same time, the company contributes to a sustainable planet and EnGreDi creates maximum value for its people.

How can EnGreDi's technology be applied? Mosses are the basis of greening in both urban and rural areas. They also serve as botanical filters for air conditioning. Moreover, they can serve as feedstock for biotechnological applications in health and agriculture.