Key takeaways from first European event on bio-produced materials

The Biofabricate Summit, a trade event dedicated to cutting-edge innovations in bio-produced materials, was held for the first time in France on January 10-12. An impressive selection of alternative materials was showcased at the summit in Romainville, near Paris, prompting a collective reflection by fashion and cosmetics industry players on how they could adopt and utilise these solutions.

The Biofabricate Summit, led by sector expert Suzanne Lee, was held at the Fiminco Foundation, a pharmaceuticals industrial site, where remedies against anaemia and tuberculosis were first tested a century ago, as many visitors from France and other countries discovered. The alternative materials presented at the summit, about 40 of them, were exhibited under the foundation’s imposing ceiling, arrayed amongst the building’s huge picture windows and displayed across four levels.

The mezzanine, overlooking the vast area intended for meetings, showcased algae-based materials by companies such as Keel Labs, Pneuma and Sway, alongside 3D-printed cellulose shoes made using vegetable pulp by Simplifyber, the biodegradable bio-polyester produced by Mango Materials, and the leather alternatives derived from mushrooms by VTT.

Mycelium-derived materials featured widely at the event. Notably those by Mycoworks, which a few months ago opened an industrial-scale production unit in Union (South Carolina). “We can finally catch up with demand. We are now able to produce in four to six weeks, compared to the two to three years required for calf skin,” said Frederick Martel, vice-president of the company, a supplier to Hermès, speaking to FashionNetwork.com. “Brands are now extremely receptive, as [our products] enable them to extend their range and cater for customers sensitive to environmental and animal issues,” he added.

Companies specialising in alternatives to animal hides and skins were also to be found on the exhibition space’s lower floor. Among them, Ecovative, Polybion, Tomtex, Gozen, and brewed protein specialist Spiber, which has recently begun to produce on an industrial scale. Spiber’s Biosphere Circulation project, which aims to transform clothes that have reached the end of their useful life into microbial fermentation nutrients, was recently joined by the Kering group’s Material Innovation Lab.

Also exhibiting were innovators such as Nature Coatings, which has developed a 100% natural, non-toxic, wood-based dyeing solution. As well as Colorifix, developer of a biological process for fixing textile pigments, and Insempra, with its functional bio-ingredients (lipids, fibres and more) useful to various industries.

How should these materials be called?

Industry professionals invited to the event’s first French edition were able to identify one of the main elements shared by the materials on display: all of them, with rare exceptions, were presented as alternatives to existing materials, whose names they sometimes borrow. An observation that prompted organiser Suzanne Lee to reflect on how these materials could shed such comparisons.

“Why do we need to make a mycelium-derived product look like leather? Why not embrace this biological product and integrate it into the design process, creating around it rather than disguising it?” asked Lee. “These materials are different in appearance, feel, and smell. But I think we’re still stuck in our habits: we are familiar with materials like plastic, leather, and silk. We’ll have to learn to let these new materials be what they are,” she added.

Naming issues are not preventing innovative materials from featuring on fashion week runways. Especially for the labels owned by the Kering group, a partner of Biofabricate Summit, within which it set up an exclusive space dedicated to its brands. In a dark room illuminated by video projections, Kering showcased Gucci’s Rhyton sneakers and the Horsebit handbag, in which the Italian label replaces leather with Demetra, its own non-animal alternative. Displayed opposite, Balenciaga’s Ephea and Lunaform coats. The former is named after a mycelium-derived material developed by Sqim, the latter is made using nanocellulose produced by Gozen via nano-organism fermentation.

Parley for the Oceans, which since 2017 has been committed to collecting plastic waste from the oceans to turn it into new materials, also attended Biofabricate Summit. It is a pivotal time for the organisation. “We are entering a second phase of our existence. After developing our own ideas, we are now working with others on their ideas,” said CEO Cyrill Gutsch. Gutsch visited the event with Hannes Schönegger, the boss of Bananatex, a company that transforms banana plant fibres into fine thread. Two years after presenting the Bananatex t-shirt, Schönegger came to Biofabricate Summit to show the company’s latest fabric prototypes, whose feel is noticeably softer.

The Biofabricate Summit gathered an audience chiefly connected to the apparel industry, but it also showcased innovations that could be tapped by the beauty sector. The Design Lab section included several innovative exhibitors, among them Bioweg, which sets out to eliminate non-biodegradable microplastic additives in cosmetics products, and Cellugy, which has developed biodegradable cellulose suitable for packaging. As well as Sparxell, whose natural make-up glitter can replace harmful pigments, and Cambrium, with its range of sustainable fermented collagen sourced without exploiting animals.