- Ethylene removed
- >90%
- Stage
- Pilot
The problem
Nearly half of all fruit never reaches our plates.
Much of it is lost during transport and storage. The culprit? Ethylene, a natural ripening hormone that speeds up ripening, causing billions in waste, losses for farmers, and fewer fresh, healthy choices for everyone.
ethylene — the accelerant behind those losses, and the only thing our device touches.
of fresh fruit produced worldwide is wasted before it reaches a plate.
of those losses occur during transport and storage.
The device
Adsorption, the process behind Ripenew
An advanced adsorbent material binds ethylene straight out of the air at normal storage temperature and pressure. The cartridge is regenerated and put back to work, so the device keeps running on the same materials.
Air passes through the cartridge
The adsorbent binds ethylene from the chamber atmosphere. No cooling change, no added gas, nothing left behind on the fruit.
The cartridge fills over a working cycle
Capacity is sized to the volume it serves, so a cold room and a refrigerated trailer run on different cycle lengths.
The material returns to service
The captured ethylene is released and the cartridge goes back into the cycle rather than into the bin.
Where it goes
Every step of the chain gains.
At Ripenew we are passionate about finding innovative ways to minimise fruit waste while keeping its quality intact. Our team works to make sure nothing good is thrown away, and by promoting sustainability and efficiency we aim to have a positive impact on the environment and on people’s lives.
Growers with storage
Holding harvest for a better price window without paying for it in shrink.
Logistics and distribution
Refrigerated trucks, containers and cargo ships on long routes.
Retail cold rooms
Back-of-store chambers where mixed produce sits together for days.
Organic and bio
Supply chains that cannot use post-harvest chemistry at all.
Where we are
Validated at pilot scale and funded to reach the market.
Six researchers from Instituto Superior Técnico with the technical depth to build this and one goal: a more sustainable way to keep fruit fresh.
ethylene removal, measured at pilot scale under real storage conditions.
secured through the INNOV-ID programme, Portugal Ventures.
place, Lab2Market Técnico 2024.
place, Santander X Portugal Awards 2025.
Get in touch
Tell us what you store, and we will size a pilot for it.
Chamber volume, product mix and how long the fruit typically sits — that is enough for a first conversation about whether the device fits your operation.