The project, which has been awarded €3,000, contemplates the necessary structure to host the enterprise in an ecological and environmentally-conscious framework
Pablo Ruiz, student of the Undergraduate Degree in Forestry and Sustainable Natural Resources, has won the first prize in the 6th Contest of Entrepreneurial Ideas of the University of Oviedo with CockFarm180, the project of an animal farm to grow and sell cockroaches, both as living fodder for zoo animals and private business, and grinded for enterprises devoted to the production of fodder. The award includes a cash prize of €3,000 and counceling to set in motion this entrepreneurial idea.
Some of the motives cited for choosing cockroaches are they fast reproduction and the lack of specific maintenance or living conditions. Moreover, they are not affected by diseases or plagues, and they can live in very poor conditions. "With them, we could elaborate and process flours rich in healthy fats, calcium, iron and zinc", the winner claims.
Pablo Ruiz is 25 years old, born in Santander and studies at the Polytechnical School of Mieres. As he explains, "some time ago, snail farms seemed like a crazy idea but they were successful; we only need to overcome one obstacle, a social one, especially in Europe, since, if we look at Asia, we will see that cockroaches are a part of the diet of millions of people, and it is seen as a normal habit".
The project contemplates that the structure needed to host the enterprise is constructed in an ecological framework of sustainability and respect towards the environment, with natural materials, giving the enterprise naturalist characteristics (eco-farm) and visually attractive for the client.
The second prize, awarded with €2,000, went to Ainhoa Cid and Natalia Ferreira, students of the Master's Degree in Remote-Sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), whose proposal, "Karten", was born with the aim of taking as much advantage as possible of Remote-Sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). Futhermore, the third prize, awarded with €1,000, went to Catuxa Irene Fernández, student of Computer Science Engineering, and her project "Sportsintelligence": a specific software for analyzing a great amount of data through artificial intelligence and data mining to facilitate making decisions in sports.
