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Sustainability

Are New Materials Ready to Go Mainstream?

A wave of high-profile failures has dampened the hype around biofabricated materials and ingredients, making this year a critical one for start-ups in the space to execute on scale-up plans.
Mexican start-up Polybion is among a number or start-ups seeking to bring biofabricated materials to market.
Mexican start-up Polybion is among a number or start-ups seeking to bring biofabricated materials to market. (Polybion via Instagram)
By
BoF PROFESSIONAL

Ten years ago, Suzanne Lee gathered a nerdy group of synthetic biologists, designers and artists in a sterile conference room in Microsoft’s New York headquarters to discuss an audacious shared vision: a fashion industry transformed by “biofabricated”

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Further Reading

What’s Blocking the Rise of More Sustainable Materials?

Weaker-than-expected demand for Swedish textile recycler Renewcell’s first commercial volumes of recycled cellulose pulp has sent the company’s stock price plummeting and highlighted broader hurdles challenging efforts to lessen fashion’s environmental footprint.

Why the Business of Beauty Ingredients Is So Hard to Crack

Calls for more sustainable alternatives have created opportunities for makers, but the capital-intensive, often lengthy process of bringing new materials to market represents a huge challenge — especially when consumer-facing brand ambitions are involved.

About the author
Sarah Kent
Sarah Kent

Sarah Kent is Chief Sustainability Correspondent at The Business of Fashion. She is based in London and drives BoF's coverage of critical environmental and labour issues.

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