# Jean Pierre Azañedo

> Jean Pierre Azañedo is the CEO and co-founder of Zero Waste Co. (ZWC) and CoreZero, a Miami-based climate-tech venture that turns food waste and other discarded material into tradable carbon credits. A second-time founder from Peru, he previously built Kanay into that country's leading waste-management company before it was acquired by France's Séché Group. In 2023 CoreZero serialized the world's first carbon credits generated from food-waste diversion, working with the Mexican food-banking network. Azañedo's thesis is simple and stubborn: waste has boundless value, and nobody makes something just to throw it away.

- **Role:** CEO & Co-Founder at Zero Waste Co. / CoreZero
- **Organizations:** Zero Waste Co. (ZWC), CoreZero, Round Foods, CircleTrade, Kanay SAC (former), Séché Group Perú (former, via acquisition)
- **From:** Peru
- **Nationality:** Peruvian
- **Education:** Business Sustainability Management, University of Cambridge
- **Known for:** Grew Kanay from zero to $30M+ in revenue in three years, Named EY Young Entrepreneur of the Year, 2019, Co-founded CoreZero, generating 221,800 carbon credits with the Mexican food-banking network - the world's first from food rescue

## Career timeline

- **2013** — Founds Kanay SAC, a hazardous-waste management company in Peru.
- **2013-2018** — Grows Kanay from $0 to over $30M in sales and ~1,300 employees, making it Peru's leading waste-management company.
- **2019** — Kanay is acquired by France's Séché Group (rebranded Séché Group Perú); Azañedo exits. Named EY Young Entrepreneur of the Year.
- **2020** — Co-founds CoreZero with Ignacio Bordigoni in March, a platform generating carbon credits from waste.
- **2022** — Relocates to Coconut Grove, Miami. CoreZero closes a $7M pre-Series A led by Nazca Ventures, with FEMSA Ventures and the IDB participating.
- **2023** — CoreZero serializes the world's first carbon credits from food-waste diversion via the Mexican food-banking network; seed round with Rumbo Ventures.
- **2024** — Builds out Zero Waste Co. as an umbrella of three divisions: CoreZero, Round Foods, and CircleTrade.

## Achievements

- Grew Kanay from zero to $30M+ in revenue in three years
- Named EY Young Entrepreneur of the Year, 2019
- Co-founded CoreZero, generating 221,800 carbon credits with the Mexican food-banking network - the world's first from food rescue
- Cut carbon-credit generation time from three years to about five months
- Raised $7M pre-Series A (2022) led by Nazca Ventures with FEMSA and the IDB
- Backed by FEMSA Ventures and Rumbo Ventures

## Latest updates

- **2023-03** — CoreZero serialized the world's first carbon credits generated from food-waste diversion.
- **2023-06** — Seed round with Rumbo Ventures and Fernando Lelo de Larrea H.

## Links

- Website: https://zwc.io
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jpazanedo/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/jean-azanedo
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-01