This article is also available in Italian / Questo articolo è disponibile anche in italiano
Using a mycelium-based technology, Smush Materials transforms agricultural by-products into a completely natural, circular and biodegradable biomaterials for packaging. The produced packaging produced is customisable and presents itself as an alternative to expanded polystyrene in packaging, particularly for those uses where companies are not yet able to replace it with compostable substitutes, such as for heavy (> 10-15 kg), refrigerated or fragile products.
“Our target customers are in sectors such as automotive, electronics, household appliances, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Additionally, we aim at luxury designer furniture and accessories to packaging for heavy and bulky machinery such as lifts”, said Marco Lenzi, co-founder and CTO of Smush Materials.
The great potential of mushrooms in the field of materials is getting more and more recognized. The Lombardy-based company makes use of a fermentation process primed by fungal mycelium growth to transform mainly agricultural by-products into a composite material with adequate performances to replace polystyrene. After use, the packaging can return to the soil as fertiliser or can be disposed of as organic waste.
The alternative to polystyrene from agricultural waste
The production process of the company's materials emits 90% less CO₂ than the production of polystyrene, without considering raw material procurement and end-of-life. “The sourcing of agricultural waste is integral part of the circular core business we are developing,” continues Lenzi. “The raw materials, namely the substrate we offer to the mycelia, are entirely composed of organic waste, such as agricultural by-products from local Italian crops, and organic industrial by-products from textile industries. In this way we are developing a technology that is independent of foreign supplies and completely circular. To date, 90% of our supply is composed by agricultural waste and by-products from the area surrounding our production site, located at the Simbiosi - Innovation Centre G. Natta, in the countryside between Milan and Pavia. We are based right among the crops where these wastes are generated, mainly from rice cultivation.”
“Currently, the development of our business does not allow us to enter the market directly because of the scale up of volumes and related investments, which are necessary in the packaging sector to offer competitive volumes,” concludes Lenzi. “We are carrying out several dedicated prototyping activities and POC experiences in different sectors. This aims to modelling and validating Smush's solutions together with our customers.”
Winner of the 2021 edition of #Switch2Product and already present at Klimahouse 2024, Smush Materials is currently engaged in Cariplo Factory's Terra Next acceleration programme.
Name:
Smush Materials
Website:
Sector:
Bio-based materials
Plus:
Technology based on the growth of fungal mycelium and the processing of agricultural by-products
Features:
Biobased, compostable packaging with 90% lower carbon footprint than polystyrene
Image: Envato