In Israel, startup MadeRight has raised $2 million in seed funding to drive biodegradable packaging made from fungi.
Founded in 2022, MadeRight is using fermentation to cultivate fungi grown on organic industrial waste such as wood chips to produce biodegradable packaging materials. When mixed with bioplastics, the material can be pelletized and used within existing packaging industry machinery.
The funding was led by foodtech incubator Fresh Start as well as venture capital firms Arkin Holdings and ARC Impact.
“Fungi serve as nature’s recyclers, thriving on what we consider waste,” mycology expert and cofounder and CEO of MadeRight, Rotem Cahanovitc, told The Times of Israel. “We harness the potential of fungi to fashion materials from renewable sources, fostering an economic circularity that will steer the future’s material revolution.”