The pair were tasked with creating a product that promoted local produce, so Rodoreda and Tilly decided to use unwanted avocados.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe product is made from second grade and below avocados. These can be fruits that are overripe or never made it to retail because of small discrepancies, such as aesthetics or bruising, which doesn\u2019t affect our end product in any way,\u201d says Rodoreda.<\/p>\n
\u201cAvocado is a very popular fruit at the moment, and after speaking with local farmers, we\u2019ve learned that avocado tree plantations in Australia have increased by up to 40 per cent in order to meet market demand, and therefore the number of wasted avocados will increase exponentially \u2013 and that\u2019s where Gelavo comes in.\u201d<\/p>\n
As well as being sustainably sourced, Gelavo is vegan, lactose-free and contains many of the nutrients needed for a healthy diet, such as vitamins C and E, and omega 3.<\/p>\n Rodereda says her motivations for developing a product that would be suitable for most people\u2019s diets stemmed from her family\u2019s health experiences.<\/p>\n \u201cIn my immediate family there\u2019s a hereditary autoimmune condition, coeliac disease and food intolerances.<\/p>\n \u201cI initially enrolled in a Bachelor of Health Sciences at Curtin as I wanted to be able to understand and treat conditions like those within my family, but I soon realised I wasn\u2019t interested in the broader subject. Switching to food science and technology allowed me to learn how I could help people with these conditions through food.\u201d<\/p>\n While the young entrepreneurs knew they had an innovative product with Gelavo, their idea lay dormant for two years until Tilly received an email about the Curtin Accelerate<\/a> program in 2017.<\/p>\n The 10-week intensive program assists Curtin students, alumni and staff to get their business ideas off the ground by providing mentoring, an equity-free grant, working space and access to industry contacts and networks.<\/p>\n \u201cIt seemed like the right time to launch a product like ours. The market for healthy, vegan and dairy-free desserts is growing rapidly, and large numbers of consumers are choosing to exclude dairy for ethical or health reasons,\u201d says Tilly.<\/p>\n Rodoreda and Tilly earned a place on the Accelerate program, which was funded by donations from Curtin\u2019s inaugural Alumni Annual Appeal<\/a>. The appeal invites alumni to share their stories, experiences and advice with current Curtin students, and to support student scholarships and innovative projects.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout our Accelerate experience we wouldn\u2019t have a company,\u201d says Rodoreda.<\/p>\n \u201cThe mentorship we\u2019ve received has been invaluable, and we\u2019ve been inspired and motivated by the other start-ups we\u2019ve met through networking. We\u2019re also far more confident when pitching to investors \u2013 we were completely out of our comfort zone to begin with,\u201d says Rodoreda.<\/p>\n Rodoreda and Tilly have been perfecting Gelavo at Curtin\u2019s laboratories in the School of Molecular Life Sciences, but they are planning to purchase their own equipment so they can increase production and eventually sell Gelavo through major food retailers.<\/p>\n They are also hoping to promote their ice-cream at the Araluen Avocado Festival this November.<\/p>\n __________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.curtin.edu.au\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Avocado_Hass.jpg\")