Biomaterials

The recent methodological proposal on lifecycle assessments (LCAs) by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the scientific body of the European Commission, has come in for flak as the policy landscape in which the methodology is implemented creates systemic disadvantages for innovative industries using alternative feedstocks.

Biotech company MycoWorks has successfully harvested and shipped over a thousand sheets of its luxury leather-alternative biomaterial Fine Mycelium.

A cleantech biochemical start-up Nature Coatings has given the world perhaps its first carbon-negative black pigment — the BioBlack TX — sourced from FSC certified wood waste. texfash.com talks to the Founder-CEO Jane Palmer on her journey this far.

A raincoat made out of algae is what a researcher at the Arizona State University has experimented on and given the right partners it could be pushed further for commercial readiness.

Polybion creates Celium, a premium, high-performance biomaterial from fruit waste. A leather alternative available as fabric, albeit a lot more expensive, the company claims that Celium’s performance is almost equal to cowhide leather. Gabriela Irastorza Dragonné, Head of Communications & Culture at Polybion, tells texfash.com why investment, scaling and deployment are imperatives to help zero-carbon biomaterial companies to offer lower costs as time goes by.

When cutting-edge technology is applied to fruit waste it creates an all-new world of revolutionary, premium biomaterials — where performance meets possibility. The technology, modelled on nature’s own design, aims for an animal-free, more sustainable future — one cell at a time. And doing this is Mexico-headquartered Polybion as it moves from linear to circular, leftover to constructive, and from leather to Celium. texfash.com talks to Gabriela Irastorza Dragonné, the Head of Communications and Culture at Polybion to know more.The first part of an interview.

Stephen Mayfield is a distinguished professor of Biology at UC San Diego. Tom Cooke came with decades of experience in product development. Together, they created at Bluewear Footwear the world's first biodegradable pair of shoes made from plant-based fabrics and oils that decompose fully. A riveting interview with texfash.com.

Vegan, completely biodegradable and produced with bio-fabrication, AMSilk’s products are environment friendly and make a significant contribution to a future zero-waste society. Ulrich Scherbel, Managing Director at AMSilk, the world’s leading supplier of innovative high-performance biotech materials, talks to texfash.com about how he aims to make smart performing biotech materials part of everyday life.

The business of bio-based materials gets stronger as yet another player steps into the market with the launch of Covation Biomaterials by the Chinese conglomerate, Huafon Group.
 

The Department of Forest Biomaterials at the Wilson College of Textiles, US, has developed a process that uses nanocellulose to produce clothing items with iridescent features resembling the rainbow-hued shimmer seen on fish scales, bird feathers and insect bodies.