Dr Ilan Adler

The problem

Large scale farming operations have well established methods for converting farm waste into renewable fuel and natural fertiliser. Small farms need access to scaled-down, efficient waste management solutions to make sustainable processes more widespread.

The solution

EcoNomad delivers small scale technology for sustainable resource management and agricultural waste reduction. Its sustainable, affordable technologies enable waste recycling and management, empowering smallholding farms and rural communities to be more self-sufficient.

EcoNomad’s range of solutions include a biogas and nutrient recovery system, known as the BioNomad™, that can be used on small farms to turn agricultural waste into biofuels for heating and an enriched liquid fertiliser. The technology was tested and demonstrated to add value during a four-year trial at a farm in London.

Another solution is EcoNomad’s patented technology for low-cost solar water pumping and pasteurisation, which works using passive thermal principles, without the need for electricity or moving parts.

Dr Ilan Adler identified a need for scaled down technologies during work in Mexico that resulted in him setting up a non-governmental organisation and co-founding a social enterprise to promote eco-technologies in rural communities. This inspired later research in the UK that led to the development of EcoNomad.

Following the success of its pilot, EcoNomad has further trials planned in the UK and Mexico, aiming to bring its first products to market in 2019.

Traction

• 2019: London Business School Launchpad programme awarded to spin-out.
• 2019: European Regional Development Fund grant awarded in collaboration with University College London (UCL) and Rothamsted Research (agricultural institution in the UK) for full-scale prototype testing.
• 2018: Support and mentoring provided by UCL Innovation and Enterprise. 
• 2018: Santander Research Catalyst Award granted for early-stage solar technology testing in collaboration with Centre for Scientific Research of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.
• 2017: Biogas prototypes in Surrey Docks Farm awarded the UCL Provost’s Public Engagement Award.

Dr Adler was awarded a 2018 Enterprise Fellowship to support him in making sustainable solutions for agricultural resource and waste management more widely available to smallholdings in the UK and Europe.