In New York, biobased leather startup Uncaged Innovations is working with Hyundai to use its biobased leather in automotive upholstery.
Uncaged Innovations boasts a plant-based leather alternative that looks, feels and even smells like animal leather. Feedstocks include wheat, soy, and corn proteins that mimic the texture of animal hide proteins. The resulting material has a 95% lower carbon footprint.
The team is now preparing to meet the high durability requirements for automotive applications. “One of the automotive companies wants us to be at 95°C for 500 hours,” Stephanie Downs, Uncaged’s co-founder and CEO told Auto Car Pro. “We’ve already reached 85°C for 500 hours in our first round of testing.”
Jaguar Land Rover is also evaluating Uncaged’s faux leather to make its supply chain greener.