In the charming coastal town of Mellieħa, where traditional fishing boats bob alongside modern yachts and ancient limestone cliffs frame azure Mediterranean waters, an unlikely revolution is taking shape. It's not happening in government offices or hospital boardrooms, but in the mind of an entrepreneur who has made this picturesque corner of Malta her home for nearly five years.
Violetta Bonenkamp's daily walks along Mellieħa's waterfront sparked a realization that would eventually reshape how Malta approaches one of its most pressing health challenges. As she observed families gathering at local restaurants, sharing generous portions and creating memories around food, she recognized both the beauty and the complexity of Malta's relationship with dining.
"I fell in love with Malta's warmth and hospitality," recalls Bonenkamp, settling into a café overlooking Mellieħa Bay. "But I also noticed something troubling. The very culture that makes Malta so special – the emphasis on food, family, and celebration – was contributing to a health crisis that threatens the island's future."
A Personal Journey to Innovation
Bonenkamp's path to addressing Malta's obesity epidemic – the highest in the European Union at 28.7% – began long before she arrived on the island. Armed with an MBA and multiple advanced degrees in technology and education, she had already established herself as a serial entrepreneur in the Netherlands, founding a deeptech startup and a non profit, thus earning recognition as one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups.
But Malta changed her perspective on building startups. "In other countries, I worked on complicated technology problems that require VC funding," she explains. "Here, I could see the benefits of bootstrapping. When you learn that 40% of Maltese children are obese (it's not just a statistic – it's about the kids you see playing in Mellieħa's streets), you want to do something about it immediatelly instead of writing business plans and wasting time asking for funding."
The entrepreneur's decision to tackle this challenge through technology wasn't impulsive. Drawing on her extensive background in AI and blockchain technologies, she spent months researching Malta's unique food culture, interviewing restaurant owners, and understanding the complex factors contributing to the island's health crisis.
"I realized that telling people to stop dining out wasn't the answer and restaurants are not the enemy," she says. "Maltese culture revolves around food and family gatherings. The solution had to work within that culture, not against it."
Building Bridges, Not Barriers
The result of this research is the restaurants directory that promotes a healthy lifestyle, a platform that represents far more than technological innovation – it's a cultural bridge between Malta's cherished dining traditions and its urgent need for healthier choices. At its core lies the MELA AI (Malta's Eating and Longevity Authority), a revolutionary rating system that helps consumers identify restaurants committed to healthy, longevity-focused cuisine.
What sets Bonenkamp's approach apart is her understanding that sustainable change requires collaboration, not confrontation. Rather than criticizing Malta's restaurant industry, she's providing owners with sophisticated AI-powered tools to reach health-conscious consumers and enhance their online visibility.
"I've visited dozens of restaurants across Malta," she notes. "Many owners want to offer healthier options, but they lack the marketing skills to reach customers who would appreciate them. We're not changing the industry – we're amplifying the positive changes that were already waiting to happen."
This philosophy extends to the platform's AI chatbot, which provides personalized restaurant recommendations based on individual dietary preferences and health goals. Instead of generic suggestions, users receive curated guidance that respects their taste preferences while supporting their wellness objectives.
Local Roots, Global Impact
From her base in Mellieħa, Bonenkamp has created something uniquely Maltese yet universally applicable. The platform addresses Malta's specific challenges – from the island's exceptionally high sugar consumption to its limited infrastructure for active living – while developing technologies that could benefit other regions facing similar health crises. In the news section, one can always stay updated on Mellieha news (the rest of the island is coming soon) related to nutrition, food events and so on.
"Malta's size is actually an advantage," she explains. "We can test innovations here and prove their effectiveness before scaling to larger markets. It's like having a real-world laboratory for health technology solutions."
This local-to-global approach reflects Bonenkamp's broader vision for Malta's role in the technology sector. As the island continues building its reputation as an innovation hub, initiatives like MELA Restaurants Platform demonstrate its capacity to develop solutions that address local needs while creating exportable innovations.
Beyond Technology: Community Impact
Perhaps most remarkably, Bonenkamp's initiative has begun fostering conversations that extend far beyond restaurant recommendations. Restaurant owners report increased interest in healthy menu options, while consumers express greater awareness of nutritional choices. The platform has become a catalyst for broader discussions about wellness, community health, and sustainable dining practices.
"The most rewarding moments aren't when someone finds us on Google or ChatGPT," she reflects. "It's when restaurant owners tell me they're experimenting with new healthy dishes, or when families share how they've discovered amazing new dining options that align with their health goals."
This community impact aligns with research showing that 53% of diners actively seek healthier restaurant options, with 36% willing to pay premium prices for health-focused meals. By connecting these consumers with appropriate establishments, the platform creates economic incentives for continued innovation in healthy dining.
Looking Forward: A Vision for Malta's Future
As evening light casts golden hues across Mellieħa Bay, Bonenkamp discusses her hopes for Malta's future. Her vision extends beyond technology platforms to encompass a transformation in how the island approaches wellness, community health, and the intersection of tradition with innovation.
"Malta has everything needed to become a model for healthy Mediterranean living," she says. "Amazing fresh ingredients, a culture that values family and community, and now the technology to make informed choices. We're not replacing Malta's food culture – we're helping it evolve."
The platform's success metrics won't be measured only in clicks or restaurant partnerships, but in Malta's ability to reverse its obesity trends while preserving its cherished dining traditions. If achieved, this balance would represent something far more valuable than business success – a demonstration that technology, properly applied, can enhance rather than replace human culture while promoting health and longevity.
For now, Bonenkamp continues her daily walks along Mellieħa's waterfront, observing families gathering at restaurants, sharing meals, and creating memories. But increasingly, those meals are healthier, those choices are more informed, and that gathering culture is supporting rather than undermining the community's wellbeing.
"Five years ago, I came to Malta for the opportunities," she concludes. "Now I'm staying because I believe we can create something here that will make a difference not just for Malta, but for how the world thinks about food, technology, and community health."
In a small coastal town where tradition meets innovation, one entrepreneur's vision is quietly transforming an entire island's relationship with food, one restaurant recommendation at a time.
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond and launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 3,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
