In Australia, a startup is developing cell-based meat replacements for rarely eaten animals, including kangaroo, lion, tortoise, and yak. Vow Foods, which says it takes about six weeks to grow cells into meat, has already launched dumplings made with cultured kangaroo meat. “There have been various historical reports of how delicious the meat of the Galapagos […]
In Austria, material chemists at the University of Vienna have evaluated the viability of vegan leather made from fungi. In a review article published in Nature Sustainability, Alexander Bismarck and Mitchell Jones discuss the use of agricultural and forestry byproducts to grow fungal mycelium into leather-like materials through physical and chemical treatments. “As a result, […]
In Sweden, popular vodka brand Absolut has rolled out 2,000 paper bottle prototypes ahead of a wider production run in November. The prototypes are made of 57% paper, with the balance made from 100% recycled plastic. The first bottles will be available in Sweden and the UK, with wider distribution in spring after consumer feedback. […]
In Canada, a designer has partnered with researchers at the University of British Columbia to create an air-purifying, algae-based fabric. Dubbed Biogarmentry, the living Chlamydomonas reinhardtii undergoes photosynthesis, removing carbon from the atmosphere in the process. Designer Roya Aghighi tells CNN one of her main goals was to reduce the environmental impact of the textiles. […]
In Germany, Trebodur has developed a biodegradable packaging material from brewery waste. Specifically, creators Niko and Tillmann found that brewers’ spent grains—the residue left over from barley malt during the lautering step of beer-making—contain self-binding fiber, which they dubbed “mabeerial.” Mabeerial can replace paper and plastic packaging in single-use items such as plates and cutlery. […]
In India, Finance Minister T Harish Rao urged citizens to switch from plastic plates to biodegradable alternatives made from Areca palm. Speaking at the inauguration of an Areca palm plate manufacturing facility in Siddipet, Rao told reporters the plates decompose within 64 hours and can be made from fallen leaves without harming the tree. The […]
In California, plant-based food start-up Climax Foods has raised $7.5 million. The company’s initial focus will be on developing a fermentation-based process to make cheese, although the company aims to develop a platform that can be used to produce any animal based food, including meat and milk. “We want to essentially replace cows and other […]
In Switzerland, industrial minerals company Omya has launched biobased barrier coatings for paper and board food packaging. The portfolio includes Extomine Barrier Coatings, which are water-borne barrier and based on calcium carbonate and acrylic co-polymers, and EarthInks Barrier Coatings, which are 100% natural, compostable and biodegradable and are tailored for fast food and vending materials. […]
German cycling squad Team Sunweb will be donning protective, biobased jerseys at the upcoming Tour de France. The jersey fabric—trade named Dyneema—is made from ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene and produced by Dutch materials company DSM. “Being 15 times stronger than steel on a weight for weight basis, Dyneema fiber offers an excellent solution to increasing the abrasion […]
In Mexico, student Fernando Sánchez has designed a biodegradable test for COVID-19 antibodies as his final-year project at Tecnológico de Monterrey. “Each test is made of cellulose and contains no plastic, fiberglass, or nitrocellulose, elements found in almost all single-use diagnostics. It can be disintegrated in wastewater and is safe for most plumbing systems, even […]
