Biological recycler Protein Evolution has unveiled the world’s first garment produced using its Biopure technology at COP28.
- The parka, designed by investor and brand partner Stella McCartney, is made from rigid packaging waste and industrial textile strappings—formerly used to secure international freight containers—processed by Biopure.
- The product will be on display at COP28 at the Stella McCartney sustainable fashion exhibit through 12 December 2023. It will be in soft natural tones and reference parachute styles that have appeared throughout the British brand's collections, blending sustainable and sport attitudes. The coat serves as a proof of concept that highlights a new innovation for textile-to-textile circularity.
The technology: Protein Evolution’s Biopure technology leverages AI-designed enzymes to break down polyester waste into the raw materials of new polyester that are indistinguishable to the petroleum-derived raw materials used in polyester manufacturing today.
- Once these raw materials are re-integrated into the manufacturing process, the result is an infinitely recyclable polyester with a meaningfully lower carbon footprint than polyester produced from petroleum.
- Biopure is capable of handling a variety of waste streams, from plastic bottles and clam-shells, to industrial textiles and garments.
- To create the parka, Protein Evolution transformed rigid packaging and industrial textile waste into textile-grade polyester. Working with partners in the EU, the polyester was then spun into yarn and woven into new fabric by Stella’s team to be used in the design of the coat.
The partnership: Stella McCartney was an early investor in Protein Evolution and is an advocate for the company’s innovative technology. Protein Evolution’s initial fundraising round was led by Collaborative Fund’s climate-focused Collab SOS, which is in partnership with McCartney and LVMH.
- In late 2022, Protein Evolution and Stella McCartney announced a R&D collaboration for Protein Evolution to turn unused polyester fabrics from Stella McCartney’s previous collections into virgin-quality polyester, piloting a circular solution for the fashion industry.
- The team has marked a major breakthrough and milestone for the partnership in less than a year.
Leveraging biology: Protein Evolution was founded in 2021 by entrepreneur Connor Lynn and Jonathan Rothberg, a world-renowned scientist, entrepreneur and National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipient.
- The company’s first product is Biopure: a biological recycling process that enables textile and plastic waste to become an infinitely reusable resource.
What they said:
Today marks a pivotal moment in the move towards textile-to-textile circularity in the fashion industry. Not only is this jacket validation for the utility and quality of biorecycled polyester—specifically polyester chips created using Biopure—it also offers companies an alternative to the landfill or incinerator for their fabrics, extending the life of their materials indefinitely.
— Connor Lynn
Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer
Protein Evolution
Anybody who knows me knows that I hate waste, which is why I am so thrilled about our collaboration with Protein Evolution. Through my SOS Fund, we were among the first to invest in their pioneering biological recycling technology; one that has the potential and power to transform the world's plastic waste into infinitely recyclable polyester. Over the last year, Protein Evolution has taken unused fabrics from my past collections to test and prove their textile-to-textile circular process. This allowed my atelier to design and create the beautiful, airy parachute parkas.
— Stella McCartney
Designer-Founder
Stella McCartney
We’re excited for the world to learn about a company we’ve believed in, and backed, from day one. Protein Evolution’s breakthrough technology delivers a cost-effective, high-quality way to combat plastic waste and create a truly circular product, not only in fashion, but across industries. It’s remarkable what the company has achieved in less than a year of this collaboration with our partner Stella McCartney.
— Sophie Bakalar
Partner
Collaborative Fund
