Back to VivaTech 2018

Last May, BIOMEDE was present at VivaTech, one of the biggest events dedicated to technological innovation and start-ups. The Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region has therefore decided to question Ludovic VINCENT, co-founder of BIOMEDE, about his start-up, his innovation and his projects.

If this video has convinced you of the interest of phyto-extraction, do not hesitate to fill out the contact form. We will get back to you soon.

If our article interested you, do not hesitate to browse the others available on our blog to learn more about Biomede and its industry.

Interview Ludovic VINCENT – Biomede by TLM

Ludovic VINCENT, co-founder of Biomede, was recently interviewed by the Lyon channel TLM – Télé Lyon Métropole at the incubator of EM Lyon Business School. You will find in this video: his project, his ambitions, his strategies but also and above all the human adventure that derives from Biomede.

Concretely when did this adventure begin ?

It began in March 2018 with the creation of SAS Biomede in the field of phyto-extraction, that is to say the soil remediation by plants.

In what context did you create this company?

I have experience in research centers in France and internationally on soil treatment using natural means (micro-organisms or plants). This is an important need since 30% of agricultural soils in Europe are contaminated by heavy metals and it is a problem that is not well enough dealt with at the moment and on which we would like to provide solutions.

What solutions will Biomede bring to this market? What is the innovation?

A mixture of plants is used to extract the heavy metals from the soil in a natural way without degrading the soil. Then we just have to remove the plants to extract the heavy metals. The interest is to provide a simple and practical solution that will help clean up all soils, including agricultural.

Where are you in the evolution of Biomede? And what are your daily challenges?

The main challenge, when we innovate, is to be able to make our solution known and adopted by our customers. The aim is to make them understand the importance of soil preservation and regeneration and the removal of these metals, which can be bad for health and for production.

What are the key figures of Biomede?

Biomede is first and foremost three labels and laureate of 7 national awards including “innovating for a changing world” of CIC, “nourishing the future” of InVivo and the Lyon Start-Up prize. It is also 800 million plant seeds planted and 5 territories in France and soon internationally.

How do you live this entrepreneurial adventure?

The adventure is the right word to describe Biomede, because one must have the taste of the risk, but also the will to want to change the future and to be able to bring new solutions on problems where one has for the moment little solutions.

What are the future objectives of Biomede?

When one is an entrepreneur, one always tries to have an optimistic vision, so the objectives for Biomede are also optimistic. We hope to make known and deploy our solution to many customers, including through the media and finally have more and more reach to the world.

What are your customers today?

We are working with innovative farmers who want to cultivate excellence, that is to say, they go even further than our solution because they try to remove as many potentially harmful elements as possible to produce the best quality possible.

So this is an innovation that we will be able to deploy in France, but also internationally? Do you have competitors?

So no, as we are a global innovation for the moment we have few competitors in our field. Deploying internationally is one of our future goals.

If this video has convinced you of the interest of phyto-extraction, do not hesitate to fill out the contact form. We will get back to you soon.

If our article interested you, do not hesitate to browse the others available on our blog to learn more about Biomede and its industry.

What is phytoremediation ?

Did you know ?

  • In France, 80% of soils are polluted, and in particular heavy metals (copper, lead, chromium, aluminum, etc.) that have accumulated for several decades.
  • Polluted soil significantly slows the growth of plants, making them vulnerable to attackers. The quality of production is also reduced.

Despite the pollution produced by human activities, nature has already shown us its extraordinary ability to continually adapt to its environment.

Indeed, many scientific studies have proved that there are plants, called hyper-accumulators (HYP), which are able to capture certain pollutants. This then allows to clean the soil in a natural way, since it is the plants themselves that extract the polluting particles. This ingenious process is called phytoextraction and is emerging as a way forward for soil remediation.

However, this technique is still too little used despite being much less expensive than existing treatments. For example, in France, major pollution control companies prioritize physico-chemical treatments in 90% of cases, which does not represent a total depollution.

To make known and develop plant treatment – phytoremediation – is therefore very meaningful today. Indeed, the current issues are focused on sustainable development and circular energy, what this process proposes.

 

If our article interested you, do not hesitate to browse the others available on our blog to learn more about this innovation.

Or if you want to use our solution for your land, fill out our form, we will get back to you soon !

Phytoextraction, an innovative solution for soil remediation

The structural properties and conditions conducive to the fertility of a soil took several thousand years to establish.

They carry in them the story and the future of life. Unfortunately, it has only been 200 years of human industrialization to pollute the earth sustainably. Heavy metals, fungicides, pesticides, hydrocarbons, nitrates, etc … have disturbed this delicate balance.

Industrialists have buried a wide variety of chemicals on their land or in the wild.

Soil pollution a national scourge

Soil is today the most polluted environment, well before water and air. It is an invisible but extremely dangerous pollution. These extremely toxic pollutants eventually end up in the water and the food chain. In addition, some are reprotoxic, others cause cancer, blood diseases and an incalculable number of diseases.

The French territory has so far one of the highest densities of polluted sites in the world. Today it is not 1, not 2 but more than 230 000 sites considered as dangerously polluted with heavy metals everywhere in France.

Yet nothing is done because the polluted surfaces are too big and the conventional techniques of depollution too expensive.

France is also one of the countries in Europe where soil remediation is most closely linked to private investment (70%). However, these large pollution control companies prioritize physicochemical treatments and soil excavation in nearly 90% of cases.

Phyto-extraction, a way forward for the depollution

Nature, in its extraordinary ability to adapt, offers effective means to remedy the pollution produced by human activities and to clean up the soil.

This is the case of so-called HYP (hyperaccumulator) plants, which have been selected for their ability to extract these pollutants from the ground. This is called phyto-extraction. These plants have already been the subject of many conclusive scientific studies but too few are used in the field.

This treatment is much less expensive and much cleaner than physico-chemical soil treatments.

 

If our article interested you, do not hesitate to browse the others available on our blog to learn more about Biomede and its industry.

And if you are interested in our solution, you can leave us your contact information so that we can contact you as soon as possible.

 

Heavy metals, this invisible pollution !

Nobody knows the real history of the land he cultivates, and even less so in urban areas. Old agricultural lands, former industrial wastelands, these soils that today serve as a shared garden. They have been exposed to certain forms of pollution including lead and cadmium.

But what to do to cultivate the healthiest possible?

 

 

Some recommendations for budding gardeners.

The maintenance of his garden begins with simple gestures. Like not giving up objects composed of zinc, or abandon old practices such as the use of plant protection products.

It must also be protected by creating a natural barrier made of hedges, as well as plant mass in order to limit as much as possible air pollution that is not without consequences on crops.

In order to be certain that the cultivated land is not polluted by heavy metals, the second step is a soil diagnosis to identify the toxic elements that are present there.
 

And after ?

In the short term, it is possible to start gardening above ground: that is, using clean potting soil and building untreated wooden bins.

In the long term, soil remediation is necessary. This expensive practice, however, has an alternative: phytoremediation. Indeed, thanks to some plants with extractive capacities you can regenerate your soil in a natural way. For this, Biomede can perform a diagnosis of your soil for you as well as provide you with a suitable seed mixture. The goal is to give a new life to your land and cultivate your garden with your green hand, and especially with your own clean and durable hand.

If you wish to make a diagnosis of your soil, fill out the form, we will contact you to accompany you for the rest of the procedure, and above all, take care of your garden.

If our article interested you, do not hesitate to browse the others available on our blog to learn more about Biomede and its industry.