Manufactured in a sheltered workshop
The Daneta sheltered workshop is part of the Association of Parents and Friends of Disabled Children. Apart from professional seamstresses, the employees here are mostly people with mental illness or physical disabilities, who are involved in all production activities, from pattern cutting to actual shipping. Currently, about 60 people with disabilities work in the workshops. The quality of all products is consistently excellent, which is why we have been working with Daneta continuously since 2017.
Research at the Czech University of Life Sciences
Many interesting ideas emerge at the Czech University of Life Sciences (ČZU). The challenge remains to put such ideas into practice. For this reason, Terpenix s.r.o. was established in 2013 upon the initiative of the experts of the ČZU as the first spin-off company of the ČZU. In addition to the Zembag project, Terpenix presents natural plant protection products on the market by means of the Ošetřeno.cz e-shop. These natural preparations are environmentally friendly and do not pose a risk to humans consuming fruit and vegetables treated by these products.
Terpenix's long-term goal is to reduce food waste; this concept is being developed in the Biostore project.
Why Zembag?
You surely know the story. You want to cook lunch, but instead of fresh potatoes, you find a green bundle of wrinkled sprouted tubers in the pantry. Potato storage is a tricky subject. Not everyone has a cellar with the ideal temperature and humidity. When stored in the light, the tubers turn green, while at room temperature they sprout quickly. Potatoes also soon become wilted, dry out and tend to develop rot and mould. Storage in the fridge is effective in preventing sprouting, but the starch turns to simple sugars and the potatoes become sweet. The solution is Zembag.
BIOSTORE project
The aim of the project is to reduce food wastage through technologies based on simple principles, using natural ingredients. Why? Agricultural production has long been dependent on synthetic substances that, while guaranteeing food overproduction, also pollute our environment. In fact, a third of the world's food production is wasted, mainly due to poor storage in households and agricultural facilities. The Biostore project is looking for a solution.
Czech caraway
You may not be aware, but the Czech Republic is one of the largest producers of caraway seeds in the world. Czech caraway is of very high quality and unique, which is why it is protected by the European Protected Designation of Origin. However, the best quality caraway seeds would be wasted on the production of essential oil. Therefore, for the purposes of the caraway sachets, we process the essential oil from sorted cumin seeds, e.g. small or broken seeds that have no further alimentary use. This way, Zembag actually prevents wastage twice.