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- ChopValue marks two key milestones — transforming its 100 millionth chopstick (10 million in Singapore alone) into new produces, and closing a USD $7.7 million funding round to expand its decentralised Microfactory network
- The funding round was with the aim to further expand in Asia Pacific and Europe, and funds gained will be used to better serve its B2B operations
SINGAPORE, April 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — ChopValue, a company that creates sustainable products from recycled materials marks two key milestones today: transforming its 100 millionth chopstick into new products and closing a USD $7.7 million funding round to expand its decentralised Microfactory network.
In Singapore alone, ChopValue has approximately 10 million chopsticks recycled since the grand opening of the first local Microfactory in 2021.
ChopValue is the first circular economy franchise in Singapore and its presence in the market marks a turning point in the conversations on reducing carbon emissions taking place in Singapore.
These milestones align with ChopValue’s rapid growth since its inception in 2016, as demonstrated by the creation of 150+ jobs across 6 countries through 63 in-development franchises, and the storing of 136,000+kg of carbon into new products from material collected by 1,700+ community restaurant partners.
Evelyn Hew, Founder and Managing Director of ChopValue Singapore, shares "The expansion of the Microfactory network demonstrates a steadily increasing awareness for sustainable issues and creating demand for sustainable goods and services, all in line with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030."
The company also recently signed Strategic Growth Agreements for market entries in Japan, Singapore, Central Europe, and the US. The new scale achieved through its Microfactory network is allowing the company to serve strategic B2B clients for projects such as multi-restaurant build outs, while continuing to meet end-customer demand.
Felix Böck, CEO and Founder of ChopValue, credits the team’s "commitment to demonstrating that the circular economy should become the norm when our natural resources are strained, and our landfills continue to grow." He hopes that the "decentralised Microfactory approach that uses local resources for local production to meet local demand will also give a reason to rethink globalised supply chains," as ChopValue enables small business owners to own local ChopValue franchises.
The funding round was led by two high-profile technology entrepreneurs with expansion interest in Asia Pacific and Europe. Also joining the round were corporate venture capital funds and existing investors. The funds will be used to expand ChopValue’s operations, particularly to better serve B2B partnerships. The focus will be on increasing production capacity and developing new product lines. The company also plans to invest in research and development with the goal of optimising its micromanufacturing principles and continuing to reduce its environmental footprint.
"ChopValue’s innovative approach to circular manufacturing, which has the potential to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the manufacturing industry, is a vision that’s coming to life and has tremendous potential for positive impact," said Andy Burt, one of ChopValue’s strategic growth partners.
By continuing to expand its network of Microfactories, ChopValue is paving the way for a more sustainable future. The unique approach to commercialising its "waste" to "resource" philosophy allows it to scale responsibly as each Microfactory is tailored to its end market size and needs. ChopValue is looking to announce the opening of 100+ new locations in the near term, and will be hiring a corporate team which will be working locally to boost the demand for ChopValue’s products in the APAC region.
About ChopValue Singapore
The World Economic Forum forecasts the circular economy to be a $4.5 trillion industry by 2030. ChopValue is the world’s first circular economy franchise, designing and manufacturing products using an innovative, high-performance material engineered entirely from recycled chopsticks. Since its founding in 2016, ChopValue’s "urban harvesting" approach has saved over 100 million chopsticks from landfill, turning them into beautiful and sustainable products for the home and office. Their compelling vision to redefine the term "waste" to "resource" has garnered the attention of top-tier media outlets such as Business Insider, BBC, The Guardian, and Forbes.
To learn more about their resource-efficient impact for a carbon-neutral future, please visit www.chopvalue.com and www.chopvalue.com.sg.
Our Commitment to the Circular Economy
With ChopValue’s global network of corporate and franchise Microfactories, the company sources, manufactures, distributes, and employs within local communities. They are expanding with like-minded and purpose-driven partners to redefine waste to resource, one chopstick at a time. ChopValue is actively seeking single and multi-unit franchise development partners who want to lead the change in their community within the US states of CA, FL, HI, NY and TX. The international expansion opportunities for their first-of-its-kind circular concept include Australia, EU, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the SEA region.
Learn more about how you can make a positive environmental impact in your city by visiting www.chopvalue.com/pages/franchising.