In London, design publication dezeen did a retrospective on the “explosion of interest” in biomaterials in 2021, with sales of plant-based goods skyrocketing as designers, corporations, and architects look to meet demands for low-carbon living. “Biomaterials used to be niche,” Regina Polanco, founder of biobased textile manufacturer Pyratex, tells the publication. “But we’ve seen a huge increase in need from big corporations.”
Mushrooms had a moment in 2021, dezeen notes, with adidas and Hermès vowing to incorporate vegan mycelium leather into products, and BMW announcing a concept car with natural latex tires and a steering wheel made of sawdust.
Greater availability of renewable materials has also allowed the design community more options. Biobased Creations, a Netherlands-based design studio, created a concept house with 100 different biobased products. “We built a house on a real scale,” the studio’s co-founder Lucas De Man told dezeen. “That was not possible a few years ago… Biomaterials are going from trend to reality. It’s going to be the fourth economic revolution.”
Mina Hasman, sustainability lead at architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill says the company began looking at biomaterials “much more rigorously” in 2021. “We desperately need to reduce embodied carbon emissions and the market and supply chain is quite limited in its ability to offer solutions today,” she says. Performance and safety tests will be required before biomaterials can be used in larger buildings. “The applications are still limited because there isn’t enough investment, funding and testing to confirm that they’re safe to use,” she said.