S.Lab scales ag waste-based packaging in Spain

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In Spain, startup S.Lab has launched its fully automated production line for converting agricultural waste, linen and hemp into biodegradable packaging.

The facility, located at Coín, has the capacity to produce 30,000 units per month. The company was originally based in Spain, but moved due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Julia Bialetska, CEO and co-founder of S.Lab, tells Forbes S.Lab’s process employs the natural process of mycelium growth.   “Mycelium is a network of mushroom roots, and it is rapidly growing, creating long white nets that bind anything that they grow on. This mechanic could be compared to a spider that creates nets and twists them around something nutritious,” she said. In the case of S.Lab, agricultural waste acts as a matrix, while mycelium binds the particles together.

The continuous, chemical-free sterilization method and “innovative robotic forming mechanism” also makes the process scalable. S.Lab has packaging pilots projects with L’oreal, JTI, and Nespresso.