The AgroRenew Story

How one idea led us on the path to achieving a more sustainable plastic

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Our Purpose

AgroRenew is a company of transformation. Through the challenge of creating revolutionary products, we expand the limits of possibility and become ever-better versions of ourselves.

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What Makes Us Different

The values we live by

We value Care.

We care about ourselves. We care about people outside ourselves. We care about our work. And we care about the potential of our work to transform the lives of our team, our families, our community, and the environment. It all matters.

We value Mistakes.

Safety and Quality are the highest priority in our production areas and throughout the company. That means we have to be honest about mistakes. Every mistake is an opportunity to improve how we work and how we think. When mistakes happen, we treat them as the foundation on which innovation is built. We encourage a culture of exploration, experimentation, and deep learning from every mistake, so we can ensure every mistake is useful.

We value Openness.

We are open. That means we’re honest, transparent, and accountable. It also means we’re open to new possibilities; we’re open to new points of view; we’re open to challenging others and being challenged ourselves. By being open, we build a high-trust environment where people care, mistakes are permissible, challenges are overcome, and transformation is inevitable.

We value Challenge.

Challenge is where you meet yourself. We embrace curiosity, adaptability, and a growth mindset as essential drivers of personal and professional development. We seek and embrace challenges as the primary vehicle for growth, improvement, and fulfilling our potential.

We value Transformation.

Transformation keeps things interesting. We want to have a transformative impact–on ourselves, our families, our community, and the environment. We want lives to be different because we existed. We believe every person can be an agent of transformation, and we support every member of the team stepping into that role.

Our Process Video
Our Founding Video
Our Story Video

The Standards We Hold

We are people who...

...make this a place we want to be.

...feel proud of our work

...believe that what we do matters.

...bring the best of ourselves to everything we do.

...always find a way.

...stand behind our results.

...use challenge as the raw material for progress.

...focus on how far we've come.

...celebrate!

Brian and Katie Southern

"Our journey from concept to realization has been a remarkable testament to the power of innovation and collaboration. With our cutting-edge processing plant, we aim to not only redefine the plastics industry but also contribute significantly to the local economy."

Brian and Katie Southern

AgroRenew Co-Founders

Brian and Katie Southern

"Our journey from concept to realization has been a remarkable testament to the power of innovation and collaboration. With our cutting-edge processing plant, we aim to not only redefine the plastics industry but also contribute significantly to the local economy."

Brian and Katie Southern

AgroRenew
Co-Founders

Leadership at AgroRenew

Teamwork = Dream Work

Brian Southern Founder of AgroRenew

Brian K. Southern

Chief Executive Officer

Katie Southern

Katie L. Southern

Chief Science Officer

Kyle Rodionov Chief Financial Officer at AgroRenew

Kyle Rodionov

Chief Financial Officer

Jessica Ell Chief Transformation Officer at AgroRenew

Jessica Ell

Chief Transformation Officer

A path of growth & innovation

Slide right for a trip down memory lane.

November 2022
March 2023
May 2023
June 2023
November 2023
June 2024

Pre-Ideation


Brian K. Southern (then Business Advisor for Southwest Indiana Small Business Development Center) begins offering office hours for entrepreneurs at The Pantheon Business Incubator in Vincennes, Indiana.

Ideation


Brian begins having conversations with community members at The Pantheon's coffee bar. Ideas begin circulating when local farmers discuss food waste problem in Knox County, Indiana.

Experimentation


Brian and his wife Katie Southern, a food scientist, begin testing watermelon composition in labs by crushing, pulverizing, drying, and grounding. They discovered melon rinds contain carbohydrate traits required for resin production. 

The Green Light


Alongside community leaders and resources at The Pantheon, Brian and Katie made the decision to move forward with the idea to develop technology that would turn food waste into a resin polymer that could be used in bioplastic production.

Public Announcement

The Pantheon hosts a press conference attended by regional media outlets, city and county officials, co-working members, and the local agriculture community. The crowd broke out in applause several times throughout the announcement!

Read Press Release >>

Groundbreaking

This groundbreaking event marks the beginning of a new chapter in our commitment to environmental stewardship and innovation.

Read Press Release >>
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