The Portuguese edition of the EWA – Empowering Women in Agrifood 2025 program, promoted by EIT Food and coordinated in Portugal by BGI Sustainable Ventures, has come to an end after six months of intensive training, bringing together ten Portuguese women entrepreneurs with projects aimed at transforming the agri-food sector. Between June and November, the participants had access to personalized mentorship, online capacity-building sessions, in-person masterclasses, and various opportunities for visibility at national and international levels, according to a press release.
According to the same source, the program closed with the Agrifood Open Day, organized by BGI Sustainable Ventures, with the support of EIT Food, the Food4Sustainability Colab, and Unicorn Factory Lisbon. It was at this event that the entrepreneurs presented their final pitches, evaluated by a jury composed of specialists from the innovation and investment ecosystem.
The distinctions were awarded based on an integrated assessment that took into account the Entrepreneurial Journey Roadmap developed throughout the program, the mentors’ feedback, and performance in the final presentation. The winners were:
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1st Prize – Viviana Ribeiro (AgriDerma): development of a sustainable dermal matrix obtained from agro-food by-products for biomedical application.
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2nd Prize – Ana Cristina Vítor (RumiPep): creation of a functional additive for ruminants, produced from industrial by-products, with the aim of reducing antibiotic use.
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Visibility Award – Ana Martins Vilas-Boas (BioUpCycle): valorisation of agro-food waste, converting it into high-value bio-stimulants.
The winners received prizes amounting to 10,000 euros (1st place) and 5,000 euros (2nd place). The Visibility Award guarantees the winner the opportunity to represent Portugal at the pan-European NEXT BITE event, which will take place on December 4, in Warsaw.
This edition’s jury included Margarida Palma, Technical and Scientific Director of the Food4Sustainability Colab, Simone Siebra, a business angel at EA Angels and Ambassador of Women in Tech, and Bárbara Leão de Carvalho, director of the Impact Innovation Fund at 3xP Global, regarded as the first women-led impact investment fund in Portugal.
For Clara Pais, Project Manager of EWA 2025 in Portugal, the results of this edition reflect “the enormous talent, resilience and vision of Portuguese women who are transforming the future of food,” highlighting BGI Sustainable Ventures’ pride in supporting the development of these initiatives and their growing impact on the national and European agri-food ecosystem.
The 2025 edition also featured guest speakers and the ongoing guidance of ten mentors who contributed decisively to the growth of the projects: Caetana Gomes Leal, Cristina Caiado Rocha, Diana Oliveira, Fernanda Vasconcelos, Margarida Mota, Maria João Souto, Maria Lúcia Babo, Nadine Teles, Teresa Braz and Teresa Moreira.
The EWA program is an initiative of EIT Food, one of the activities of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union, implemented in Portugal by BGI Sustainable Ventures.
