Could you tell us more about you and Farma Inova?

Aleksandra: I obtained a PhD in Biotechnology in the Faculty of Agriculture, University in Belgrade, and spent most of my life doing scientific and research work in the Laboratory for the Nutrition of Domestic Animals at the Faculty of Agriculture in Belgrade. Now I am employed at the Institute for the Application of Science in Agriculture in Belgrade.

Primarily, I am dedicated to research innovative solutions which can improve animal’s nutrition and my second research interest is sustainability in agriculture production and transformation of organic waste in by products or as higher energy raw material for bio-gas production. In the meantime, I got four patents granted, and the fifth is pending at the Intellectual Property Office of Serbia, European Patent Office and United States Patent and Trademark Office.

I founded Farma Inova - a startup aimed at creating new inventions for improving agricultural production that could come to life on the market and help the farmers. Trials on agricultural farms in Serbia and abroad have shown that these products are very useful in practice. They enable farmers to protect and increase the profit and in same time to preserve the health of their animals. Team members are Mladen Lojanica and Vesna Lowes. We are grateful to our mentor and sustainability venture expert Tony Kypreos for his valuable guidance and the international development of Farma Inova.

You recently became a laureate of Captain Misa Anastasijevic Award for which you were nominated by both University of Belgrade and Novi Sad. Could you elaborate more about how important this acknowledgement is to you?

Aleksandra: It is a great honor for me to be one of the laureates of this prestigious award, especially knowing that this recognition is awarded jointly by the Universities of Belgrade and Novi Sad and Media Invent from Novi Sad. The awarding ceremony took place in the Rectorate of the University of Belgrade, which is located in the endowment Captain Misa Anastasijevic to his motherland, one the most beautiful buildings in Belgrade he built in 1863.

So far, my work on the development of innovations has been evaluated at numerous international competitions in the world with many prestigious awards, amongst which I would highlight: three Nikola Tesla gold medals, WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organisation) National Award for Inventors and IFIA (International Federation of Inventors Association) Best Invention Award.

Being the laureate of Captain Misa Anastasijevic Award adorns my previous work and obliges me to continue working on the development of new innovations.

Could you share with us yours plans for the forthcoming period?

Aleksandra: The new Agri season for the preparation of roughage on farms is about to begin, and we in Farma Inova want to maintain an active role there with the application of innovations. The preparations that are developing proved to be very practical and useful organic solutions in practice. Owners of livestock farms are very interested in these products, which are primarily intended for the efficiently preparation of high-quality silages and hays.

This year, we are continuing our international cooperation with BSCC to mutual satisfaction, as well as cooperation with international innovation centers, scientific research organisations and agricultural companies.