World Resources Institute

Four Green Businesses Win World Resources Institute Competition in Mexico

November 23, 2004

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO, November 22, 2004 – A company that sells Mexico’s first organic chicken, another that restores previously unusable land for aquaculture, a third that helps replenish water supplies, and a fourth that uses sustainable technology in the production of tortillas have been announced as winners of the World Resource Institute’s (WRI) New Ventures Investor Forum in Mexico.

WRI, a Washington D.C.-based environmental think tank, convenes the forum twice a year in Latin America to provide entrepreneurs with a venue to showcase their businesses and to facilitate the transfer of venture capital to sustainable enterprises. The winners are:

Aires de Campo creates a specialized and alternative commercial channel for organic products, based on sustainable exchange, with innovative advantages for both producers and consumers. It currently sells over 120 products, including Mexico’s first organic chicken, in 11 “BioCenters,” or small stores, in Mexico.

AquaConsult Internacional promotes the diversification of Mexican aquaculture in a way that helps improve the profitability for producers while using previously unusable lands through the production of a sustainable crop of specialized algae.

EcoCreto Internacional is a leader in permeable concrete, which helps replenish underlying aquifers and deters runoff. The wide acceptance of EcoCreto will help reduce the increasing water scarcity for people and ecosystems.

Nixma is the leading company is Mexico for a new technology to produce corn flour dough for tortillas that dramatically reduces water inputs and eliminates residues common in traditional methods.

“All of our finalists at this forum have the potential to drastically change their industries. We can be inspired by the innovation and dedication of our entrepreneurs to produce goods and services, through viable business models, that are forward-thinking for populations and our environment,” said Luiz Ros, director of WRI’s New Ventures program.

During the November 18-19 forum here at the Hotel W, the other finalists named were AdobeTerra, Bioplaneta, Energia MP, Nova Energia, and Sustenta Soluciones. In addition, Dr. Herbert Kohler, chief environmental officer of DaimlerChrysler, delivered the forum’s November 18 keynote speech.

New Ventures started working in Mexico in 2004 to create tools to foster the development of sustainable enterprises. After four years of operation, New Ventures entrepreneurs have attracted more than $10 million in investments. New Ventures Mexico is a collaborative program of the Mexican Nature Conservation Fund and WRI.

The World Resources Institute (www.wri.org/wri) is an environmental research and policy organization that creates solutions to protect the Earth and improve people’s lives.