HULT PRIZE FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES 2021 WINNERS

STARTUPS WILL SHARE $1M HULT PRIZE GRANT, PARTICIPATE IN OFFICIAL SHOWCASE AT 2022 HULT PRIZE FINALS

BOSTON, April 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hult Prize Foundation today announced the winners of the annual $1M USD Hult Prize, which challenges student entrepreneurs worldwide to launch social businesses to solve the world's most pressing challenges. The 2021 "Food for Good" challenge tasked participants with building viable food enterprises that create jobs, stimulate economies, and improve outcomes for 10,000,000 people by 2030. 

Each of the seven finalist teams chosen to advance from the Hult Prize Accelerator to the Hult Prize Finals are now winners, and will receive $150,000 Hult Prize Grants, along with additional support and an invitation to showcase their innovations at the 2022 Hult Prize Finals in New York City.

"We are delighted to welcome the 2021 winning teams to our exclusive cohort of Hult Prize Grant recipients," said Hult Prize Foundation CEO Lori van Dam. "From reimagining food waste to bioeconomic empowerment to the repurposing of invasive species, the 2021 Hult Prize winners overcame challenges unique to a pandemic year, while competing in rounds of rigorous competition to field food-related businesses that are already having an incredible impact on people around the world."

The 2021 Hult Prize winners are:

Chilk (University of California, Los Angeles): The future of boba milk tea; it's an all-natural, delicious, healthy, vegan alternative to conventional sugary and unhealthy boba milk tea beverages.

Ecospire (An-Najah National University): Revitalizing olive oil waste by bringing you eco-friendly, high-quality, low-cost paper products, all without cutting down a single tree.

MotherBud (Parsons School of Design, The New School): An end-to-end mycelium cultivation platform enabling marginalized communities to build self-sustaining agricultural enterprises at scale.

Propel Foods (Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM): A FoodTech startup creating plant-based and hybrid protein foods.

ReMango (Universidad Católica "Nuestra Señora de la Asunción"): An impact driven enterprise, committed to reducing food waste worldwide, starting in Latin American...one mango at a time.

SiembraCo (Universidad del Rosario): An AgriTech platform connecting customers to farmers from planting to delivery, leading to improved productivity and lower costs for both parties.

UpRoot (National Chenchi University): Turning wasted cassava into high-quality, biodegradable alternatives to single-use plastics. 

"While it was disappointing to forego the 2021 Hult Prize Finals, we were inspired to witness our global community rallying in support of the 2021 competitors," van Dam said. "One of the most compelling aspects of being a Hult Prize finalist is the opportunity to travel and gather with the other teams and with dignitaries, and to share these innovative businesses with the world. We are excited to celebrate the 2021 winners at the 2022 Hult Prize Finals in New York City this fall."

The Hult Prize Foundation transforms how young people envision their own possibilities as leaders of change in the world around them. With a $1,000,000 global startup prize as its anchor activity, Hult Prize has brought impact-focused programs, events, and training to over a million students globally, creating a pathway for youth everywhere to take action to build a better world. The Hult family, founders, and owners of EF Education First and benefactors of Hult International Business School, created Hult Prize and provides the seed capital funding.