Volta Awards Five Atlantic Canadian Startups $25,000
HALIFAX — A company taking a new approach to recycling, a platform that helps Canadian children access nutritious food, and a digital platform that brings together Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour are among the companies joining the spring intake of the Volta Cohort program.
A total of five startups won the opportunity to enter the program on May 19, after winning the Volta Cohort pitch competition.
The competition is a chance for early-stage startup companies to snag a spot in Volta’s Cohort program, which gives them a team of mentors, office space, and $25,000 of funding.
The virtual event gave 15 candidate companies three minutes each to pitch themselves to a panel of industry experts.
The five companies who made the biggest impression, and took home the prize were:
- Drastic Scholastic Thermoplastic: a waste management company that remanufactures plastic waste into consumer and industrial products via our semi-industrial shredder, decontamination, injection, and extrusion machines.
- Food For Thought Software Solutions: helps Canadian children access nutritious food through food initiative programs while reducing the stigma around food insecurity.
- PLAEX Building Systems Inc.: uses composite material to process a wide range of difficult to recycle thermal plastic waste. Encompassing a special mix of agricultural, marine and municipal plastic waste and dry aggregates, this is turned into a durable building system that can be used and reused in a wide range of low-rise construction applications.
- Pressto: helps to develop media literacy, critical thinking & strong writing skills in young people by making journalism easy, simple and accessible for students of all ages.
- Tribe Network: is a digital platform where Black, Indigenous and People of Colour come to accelerate ideas, build communities and access opportunities.
“All of these companies will have tangible impacts on their respective industries and sectors, and it is inspirational to be part of supporting these founders,” says Volta CEO Martha Casey, who was also one of the judges.
The Volta Cohort is supported by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and has been running since 2017 when it was created as a way to inject more money into Nova Scotia’s startup economy.
Since then, more than 210 full-time employees have been hired through Cohort companies. Volta Cohort companies have raised more than $10 million in secured investments, with more than $7-million in grant dollars received by Volta Cohort companies.
To date, Volta Cohort companies have more than $500,000 in combined revenue.
“The Volta Cohort Pitch Competition is evidence of the innovative thinking and entrepreneurial drive in Atlantic Canada,” says Casey. “Many Volta Cohort companies have gone on to significant national and international success, and Volta is proud to support their growth.