Alkelux is a deep tech start-up established in Sardinia in 2024 whose mission combines sustainable chemistry, the circular economy and the fight against food waste: transforming an industrial by-product currently considered worthless – the root fibres of liquorice produced in hundreds of tonnes each year by the Calabrian supply chain – into an additive for active packaging capable of extending the shelf life of fruit and vegetables.
The technology is built around carbon-based nanoparticles with antimicrobial properties, incorporated directly into plastics or cellulose pulp during production, without the need to modify existing production facilities. In-house tests, certified by third-party bodies, have shown that the additive extends the shelf life of strawberries by up to three times, from 3 to 8–9 days, and has similar effects on other highly perishable small fruits such as blueberries. In terms of yield, a gram of powder is sufficient to treat a kilo of plastic, at a dosage of 0.1%, rendering the solution competitive compared with offerings from multinationals in the sector. Raw materials are sourced from two Italian liquorice processing companies, Liquirgam and Naturmed.
The start-up already has proof of concept contracts in place with two global players in the packaging sector and is in commercial discussions in Mexico, Chile and Thailand. The €970,000 seed round completed by the company in May 2026 will fund the construction of the pilot plant in Sassari, which will increase production from the current 10 kg at laboratory scale to 4.5 tonnes per year by the end of 2026.
Between late 2026 and early 2027, Alkelux is aiming for a Series A funding round of at least €3 million to build an industrial plant in Calabria and achieve global-scale production by 2028. In parallel, the team is working on extending the technology to other sectors, ranging from meat packaging and bakery products to single-use biomedical devices.
“This funding round, as well as providing an economic boost, is also a sign that investors believe in a deep-tech model originating in the South that makes the most of waste, people and skills that are currently at risk of going untapped,” explains Matteo Poddighe, CEO of Alkelux. “Our ambition is to build an infrastructure that begins in Sardinia, makes use of waste materials from Calabria and creates skilled jobs for those who have studied in these regions and are now very often forced to leave.”
Name:
Alkelux
Website:
Sector:
Food packaging
Plus:
An additive extracted from industrial waste, which can be incorporated into existing production facilities without any modifications
Features:
Antimicrobial nanoparticles derived from liquorice waste that triple the shelf life of fruit and vegetables
Cover: photo by Envato