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Name | Paul Morris |
Pitching | Black Nut Iberian Pig Feed |
Investment Required | £100,000 |
Equity Offered | 20% |
Brief Description | A manufactured pig feed that replaces the acorn, the Black Nut Iberian Pig's natural food source. |
Paul has a business plan to save a valuable and fussy breed of pig. He has brought assistant Pandora into the Den, hoping she will charm open the Dragons' silk purses.
Paul promises something "quite unique" as he enters the Den, and when he unveils Pandora the black pig, it seems he will not disappoint. Paul explains that the Black Iberian pig only eats acorns, which are in increasingly short supply.
The Yorkshire builder has made pig feed that tastes identical to the acorns. He says he has intellectual property rights on the acorn. The pork from these attractive animals, called pata negra in Spanish, fetches a meaty £1500-1800 for 7kg, so this has the makings of a lucrative venture.
Deborah and Paul have different ideas about protection
Paul forgot to mention in his pitch what equity he was offering. In response to James Caan's question, he says 20%.
Peter Jones asks for background on Paul himself and his idea. Paul was on holiday near Salamanca when he first saw the pigs. A local told him the pigs were valuable and that the acorns they ate were dying out.
Paul proudly explains that he has "generically" broken down the flavours of the acorn and turned it into pig feed.
Theo Paphitas has been itching to ask what else Paul has beside him, covered in cloth. The entrepreneur unveils some of the the pâté for the Dragons to try.
Theo next asks if the pigs will be free range. Paul says they are, living up in the hills. Theo wants to know if the feed is organic and Paul says it is. This is met with disbelief from the Dragons. Genetically modified foods cannot be registered as organic, as Deborah Meaden points out.
Deborah now asks how the recipe is protected. "The solicitor has the recipe in his safe," says Paul. Probing further, Deborah finds Paul doesn't actually have intellectual property rights on the recipe, as he claimed earlier.
Duncan Bannatyne asks what Paul will do with the money. Paul wants to buy 100 pigs and make 50 tons of feed in order to test the recipe. "If it works, it's happy days."
This is an odd way to test a recipe. Deborah suggests that before he buys the pigs, he should check whether they'll eat the food. Furthermore, he doesn't need 100 pigs for the trial. Paul says he was advised by "some professors" to do the trial this way. Deborah, after advising him to rethink this plan, declares herself out.
Theo says the pigs currently eat for free and can't see how Paul will manage to begin charging them for it. He will not invest. James Caan has heard enough too. For too many reasons to mention he declares himself out.
Duncan is more blunt. He says the entire thing is crazy and backs out. Peter Jones does not believe Paul's optimistic projections are right. He won't invest in something like this.
No investment.
Other entrepreneurs from this episode:
A glimpse behind the scenes with investment reactions.
Dom tests this week's products with the public.
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