In New York, a painstakingly detailed wood model of New York City, constructed by truck driver turned artist Joe Macken, is being displayed at the Museum of the City of New York. The exhibit, titled He Built This City: Joe Macken’s Model, took Macken over two decades to construct and is a whopping 50 by 27 […]
In California, cell-based cocoa producer California Cultured has announced plans to launch US sales by end of the year. Green Queen reports that the company has gained Generally Recognized as Safe status and is fundraising to support the launch. The company is targeting segments where cocoa powder is already used at scale. “That includes baked […]
In India, biomaterials firm and Shark Tank India alumni Canvaloop has raised $1.5 million to scale production of its biobased fiber and accelerate commercial adoption. The company’s process converts agricultural waste into textile-grade fibers. Such fibers are highly coveted by the global fashion and textile industries, which have faced criticism for their negative environmental impacts. Gujarat […]
In Belgium, researchers at The Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO) have converted lignin into biobased aromatic molecules that can be used in the production of plastics and other useful end products. Currently, lignin is often burned as a waste product from paper production. However, scientist at VITO say lignin contains “a wealth” of chemical […]
In Germany, inks and coatings maker ACTEGA has launched the first commercially available UV flexographic ink formulated with Living Ink’s algae-based Algae Black™ pigment. Dubbed ACTExact® UV Black Algae Ink, the launch comes in tandem with its first commercial application: beverage labels printed by NextGen Label Group™ for Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Beverages. A third-party Life […]
In Switzerland, a team from ETH Zurich and the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) has developed fire‑resistant panels made from sawdust and watermelon seeds. Building on the doctoral research of Ronny Kürsteiner, the scientists bound sawdust particles with struvite—a naturally occurring mineral made of ammonium, magnesium, and phosphate. According to Yanko […]
In Italy, grape waste bioplastics maker Vegea has expanded production capacity for its GrapeSkin material, including production lines specifically for fashion- and interior-grades. Founded in 2016, major brands such as Calvin Klein, Diadora, and Bentley have already used GrapeSkin in their designs. In 2023, Taylor Swift sported Stella McCartney stiletto boots made from the material. “Designers […]
In Denmark, architecture studio Det Levende Hus has partnered with mycelium materials firm Rebound to create interior doors with a fungi core. The door was made by growing the mycelium into a mold to make rigid panels. Rebound co-founder Jon Strunge told design publication dezeen that the collaboration aimed to “demonstrate how regenerative, high-performance mycelium-based […]
In the Czech Republic, cultivated pork startup Mewery has added Vesna VC to its stable of investors. Vesna VC invested several hundred thousand euros into the €7 million (US$8 million) seed round, which Mewery said is about halfway finished. It is expected to close by the third quarter. Mewery also announced that it has achieved […]
In Italy, Recupero Etico Sostenibile has acquired an offline biobased polylactic acid plant from Petalo Due for €2.7 million (US$3.1 million). The deal includes contracts, certifications, trademarks, patents and operating permits. The Termoli, Campobasso plant has the capacity to produce 5,000 metric tons of PLA annually and uses technology licensed from Sulzer. RES expects the […]
