Cristian Melnic, a 22-year-old man, recently licensed in food technology, has been cultivating medicinal plants on the hills of Dobrogea (Chisinau municipality) and Climăuții de Jos (Soldanesti district) for two years now.
The young man produces teas, encapsulated food supplements and even cosmetic serums. For the development of the business, in 2021, Cristian applied to the “Start for young people” program, implemented by ODIMM and obtained a grant of 180,000 lei. The money was invested in technological equipment, and the company he manages ended up producing an assortment of 21 natural remedies made from medicinal plants.
Currently, the young entrepreneur sells his products on social networks, but in the coming years he plans to distribute them in pharmacies and even export them to the European market.
The idea of business with medicinal plants appeared in 2016 and was supported by his father, doctor of biological sciences, who put his shoulder to the wheel through innovative technologies of cultivation and selection of medicinal plants.
Currently, about 60 species of medicinal plants are grown on the Melnic family plantations. They are grown in organic farming, without herbicides, only with natural fertilizers. Also, the plants are grown by hand, without agricultural equipment.
In 2022, ODIMM made available to young people several financial instruments to support business, including the State Program “Start for Youth: a sustainable home business”. Recently, the Government approved the extension of this program for another three years, and the non-reimbursable financial support was increased up to 200,000 lei. Thus, state funding reaches 70% of the value of the investment project.