CAZENOVIA — Earlier this month, Cazenovia business Eco-Baggeez, LLC was named a winner of the 2021 FuzeHub Commercialization Competition at the New York State Innovation Summit.
Held at Turning Stone Resort on Nov. 8 and 9, the competition brought together 12 entrepreneurs from across the state to demonstrate the commercialization potential of their product/technology before three expert judges and a live audience, with the chance to win $50,000.
Each of the seven winners will use their $50,000 awards to further develop their prototype in an effort to pursue additional investment and customers and to strengthen their “go-to-market” strategies.
Founded and owned by Cazenovia resident Beth Race, Eco-Baggeez, LLC produces earth-friendly reusable sandwich bags with the goal of helping to put a dent in the billions of plastic sandwich bags that are thrown into landfills each year in the United States alone.
Unlike other green alternatives to traditional plastic sandwich/snack bags, Eco-Baggeez contain no plastic or petroleum-based products of any kind. They are also microwaveable.
The recyclable and compostable paper bags are made of 100 percent sustainable products that are sourced and manufactured in the United States. The baggies themselves are produced in Oneida by Alternatives Industry, a business division of The Arc of Madison Cortland in Oneida that trains and employs adults with disabilities.
The patented product, which became available in stores throughout NYS in 2019, is now also available in green and organic stores in Rhode Island, New Jersey, and Washington. Locally, Eco-Baggeez are available at 20|EAST in Cazenovia and Nelson Farms Country Store in Nelson. A map of all retail locations is available at eco-baggeez.com. Eco-Baggeez also sold online at GreenPaperProducts.com and Amazon.com.
During her competition pitch, Race highlighted the fact that Eco-Baggeez LLC is already experiencing organic growth through online retailers and wholesalers in the business-to-business and business-to-consumer markets.
“It feels amazing to receive this award,” said Race. “After working so hard to create this business, then trying to keep our mission going through COVID, this could not have come at a better time. It will allow Eco-Baggeez to add an additional, larger bag to our current product offering and to rebrand our packaging to help us move into the national retail market. This is exactly what had to happen in order to keep Eco-Baggeez a viable product.”
The following start-ups also received awards: DomCat Technologies LLC (Binghamton), IV Wedge LLC (Babylon), Natural Beauty Breast Prosthesis, LLC (Hamilton), Pharmacoustics Technologies, LLC (Potsdam), PrisAM LLC (Rochester), and SunThru LLC (Scotia).
“We congratulate the winners for their success in the competition and for their contributions to the future of critical industries in New York State,” said FuzeHub Executive Director Elena Garuc in a Nov. 10 press release. “We had an extremely strong cohort of competitors this year and look forward to working with these young companies as they continue to build their products and businesses.”
FuzeHub — a non-profit organization that assists small and medium-sized manufacturing companies in New York State — and Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology & Innovation (NYSTAR) present the annual NYS Innovation Summit to showcase emerging industries and foster collaboration throughout NYS’s innovation ecosystem.
This year’s event, which drew more than 500 people, included opportunities for attendees to network with peers, experts, and resources for commercialization and manufacturing; exhibits on cutting-edge products developed in New York State; panel sessions on topics such as disruptive technology, national trends, and economic development; keynote speakers; and a CEO roundtable.
“The experience at the event was so incredible,” said Race. “Everywhere you looked there were people passionate about cutting edge innovation. I’ve never been to anything like it. Very inspiring. NYSTAR and FuzeHub put on a top-notch event. I made some important new connections that I wouldn’t have otherwise made. I can’t wait to see what next year brings.”
The summit’s fifth annual Commercialization Competition was presented as part of FuzeHub’s Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund. Consisting of $1 million annually, the fund supports a set of activities designed to spur technology development and commercialization across NYS. FuzeHub administers the fund as part of its role as the Empire State Development-designated statewide Manufacturing Extension Partnership program center.
To learn more about FuzeHub, visit fuzehub.com.
