(English) Best Practices

Liofyllo is an idiom to say olive leaf at Greek language. The Social Cooperative Enterprise, in harmony with the principles of the circular economy, creates a novel eco-friendly material (International evaluation from WIPO- Assessment of the international patent - copyright of member states) from the untapped olive leaves and bio-based or/and biodegradable adhesives. Its mission is to manage mostly the biomass of the olive leaves that is discarded during the production process of olive oil and replace materials which are not environmentally friendly (e.g. wooden panels, plastics, rocks, etc). This new material is used for a wide variety of constructions, artworks, products and objects in order to protect the environment and promote the Mediterranean and, in particular, the Greek culture. Until now, Liofyllo produces the Welia (as wooden panels) and Marelia (as tiles and marble) panels. In addition, it processes panels that are destroyed during the production and reuses them as raw material to create unique pieces of art. The products work as special souvenirs, awards, memorabilia, and works of art. Currently, the Liofyllo team creates collaborations for small projects in order to produce various useful objects from its material, such as flower pots, recycling bins, etc., in order to replace the existing plastic products but also to strengthen the ecological consciousness in Greece. The innovation of Liofyllo lies on the use of the untapped natural raw material, (green, or dead, dried, broken or crushed {powdered}) olive leaves, which are discarded during the process of collecting olive oil and other olive derivatives. By this patented procedure, the team creates a new “green” material for constructions. This project is without question a breakthrough in the field of environmentally friendly materials. Although there are some firms all over the world that claim to be eco-friendly by exploiting untapped natural raw materials, Liofyllo is the first that uses olive leaves in this way. Liofyllo has the exclusive use of this patent (global evaluation by WIPO, national patent by HIPO and pending European and US patent).

Our project contains economic and social benefits. Furthermore, we help to boost the eco-awareness at least at national stage and inform every people how we can save our planet through different ways. By achieving massive production, we reduce significantly the cost production of eco-friendly panels and, consequently, there is great financial potential-profit as a result the creation of new vacancies. The replacement of non-environmentally friendly materials and running out natural resources (deforestation, mining) contributes to the reduction of the aforementioned materials as well as the regulation of pollution. The exploitation of olive leaves is basically cost-efficient. We should bear in mind that the cost production of eco panels is equivalent to that of environmentally harmful materials. The olive leaf has an unparalleled natural look, giving added value to other products. There is no carbon footprint neither during its production nor during its use and it follows the principles of the circular economy. For instance, recycled material can be used in art design pieces. Our products promote the Mediterranean culture, while extol the Greek one. Finally, the innovative material is easily scalable and applicable to many industries. The Mediterranean region has direct benefits from this project because the three biggest producers of olive oil are Spain, Italy and Greece.

Women empowerment

Youth education

Green skills

Social and solidarity economy

R&D, recycling biomass

Circular economy

Eco-friendly products

The idea of Liofyllo started from two people and now the team has six leading members, four employees and 15 volunteers. Liofyllo has participated at many events, conferences and seminars to inspire more people about green, social and female entrepreneurship. During the last year, Liofyllo is partner at 5 european projects and has received financial support from the region of Western Greece. Through these programs, the team implements many actions which are based on the three pillars of the enterprise. Furthermore, the social enterprise has partnered with public bodies, organisations and big companies to create custom made green products.

Liofyllo's impact indicators were identified during the conception of the startup idea. They have been demarcated, supplemented and are being developed and updated daily. Clear and concrete performance goals make it easier to generate relevant, consistent and comparable data over time, in formats that highlighting the enterprise’s contribution to society and the environment.

Through recycling of olive leaf biomass from olive mills and cutting olive wood from the agrifields it is estimated that 7500 kg of olive leaves and 1320 kg of olive wood were recycled. Through product sales and donations of Liofyllo’s creations to organizations with main objective the adoption of an eco-conscious mentality, about 1300 kg of plastic, plexiglas, wood (MDF, OSB, etc.) were replaced by eco-friendly, innovative material. By educating- empowering vulnerable social groups, 239 people (mainly women 67%), were trained in national or european educational programs.

As a result of Liofyllo’s actions is the contribution to reinforce the green, female and social entrepreneurship and inspire more people to deal with these sectors.

In November 2018, Liofyllo was one of the 22 finalists among 1,000+ applications in the annual Mediterranean Rise for Change Program for Social Entrepreneurship (2018-2019) organized by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (U.N.I.D.O) and the Fondazione CRT Foundation. The Rise for Change program was aiming to broaden – on a global scale- the knowledge and skills of young social entrepreneurs in the field of «business» and provide them with the means that will contribute to sustainable development and optimization of their existing social impact.

In June 2022, Liofyllo participated as a trainee in the Social Sustainable Entrepreneurship Accelerator program sponsored by Microsoft and organized by Startup Pathways. Liofyllo was also the creator of the souvenirs for the closing ceremony of the program. Liofyllo also uses the Greek patent of the novel material which is globally evaluated by WIPO and pending European and US patent.

There is investment interest from other countries seeing the dynamic of the project and the scalability that it has. The development of the production unit will give a different image to Liofyllo, but also, additional competitive advantages in the market. Unfortunately, the bureaucratic obstacles, the lack of recognition due to the legal form of Liofyllo (SCE) and the functionality of the Greek system which is quite behind in sustainability issues compared to that of the rest Europe, are delaying the progress of implementation.

In conclusion, all the humanity can help to save our planet doing small steps to change our mindset and habits.