Every year, the international trade fair Ecomondo, one of Europe’s leading events in the field of green economy and sustainability, is held in Rimini, Italy. This event serves as a space for meeting and dialogue between various industries, relevant actors, opinion leaders and local authorities.

For the 2023 edition, the Eurochile Business Foundation was present with its Ecomondo 2023 Business Mission. The mission was led by the Business Cooperation team and consisted of attending, together with a group of entrepreneurs specialised in sustainability and circular economy, the various activities, expert presentations, workshops, conferences, seminars and field trips that took place from 7 to 10 November.

The list of participating companies includes Volta SpA, Asipla, the Systems Biotechnology Centre of the Andrés Bello University (UNAB), the National Association of the Recycling Industry (ANIR), Resiter, Remap SpA, Kalewün, Hidronor Chile S. A., Red Pyme Mujer, Nido Biotech, Ecología en Tu Barrio, Bellbast Chile, Comberplast, Ecobio and Inmobiliaria Vega Monumental S. A. In addition, the Mayor of the Municipality of Quemchi, Luis Macías and representatives of the Regional Government of Los Lagos will participate.

According to the results delivered by the Ecomondo trade fair, the latest edition of Ecomondo saw a significant increase compared to the 2022 data. In particular, there was a +15% increase in attendance compared to the previous year, a remarkable figure considering that 2022 was held simultaneously with the KEY Energy fair.

In terms of the knowledge acquired by the entrepreneurs, the innovation and new trends that are taking place in Europe in terms of sustainability and circular economy in the various sectors present at the fair stand out. Bárbara Baxa, executive director of Red Pyme Mujer, shares her experience: “I was able to learn about the most outstanding business models that develop productive activities related to recycling and waste treatment. In addition, I had the opportunity to familiarise myself with new technologies for reuse and recycling, and the most interesting thing was to discover the collaborative models in the recovery of some waste, such as textile waste”.

On the other hand, Alejandro Valencia, general manager of Resiter, shares that one of the main motivations for joining this Business Mission was to learn about European initiatives on sustainability and circular economy, recognising the importance of keeping up to date in order to stand out from the competition. “It is essential for companies that are part of the Circular Economy ecosystem to be able to observe European practices in different fields and industries. Talking to technology providers is very helpful to understand where different industries are heading and what are the most relevant technologies and treatments. We can also identify more specialised technologies that might be interesting for specific cases.

Carolina Peña, business development leader at the Centre for Systems Biotechnology at the Universidad Andrés Bello, also points out that the fair has been a pleasant surprise. In her opinion, there are many interesting aspects related to the university’s interests, especially in the field of biotechnology. This provides opportunities to establish international contacts and develop projects that can bring innovation to Chile.

In this sense, Nina Morales, Director of Institutional Affairs and Business Cooperation, highlights that: “it was a unique opportunity for companies to connect with leaders and experts in environmental sustainability, technology and business development. These missions are part of Eurochile’s vision to foster sustainable growth and international collaboration. In addition, we invite all companies to join the next edition of Ecomondo, which is a unique opportunity to explore new trends, establish key contacts and lead companies towards a more sustainable future”.

For this reason, the Business Missions organised by Eurochile play a key role in providing companies with the opportunity to learn about the latest trends in various fields, especially those related to the circular economy and sustainability. This is in line with the foundation’s mission to facilitate the connection between Chilean SMEs and the European market.

Again in 2024, Eurochile will organise a business mission to Ecomondo. Preparations are underway and dissemination will start shortly.