Today, Bloom Labs launches to accelerate the world’s transition towards a circular economy, by developing next-gen alternatives to natural and synthetic fibres, and plastics.
Bloom Labs is pioneering breakthroughs in material science by harnessing the value of natural waste by-products, a protein-rich and globally abundant raw material, to create new high performance clothing and plastic materials that are scalable and commercially viable yet avoid the use of harmful petrochemicals and resource-intensive processes.
Using bio-manufacturing, advanced protein engineering, and molecular biology, our proprietary technology plasticizes waste, regenerating it into uniquely practical and versatile pellets. The pellets are spun into high-performance fibers, designed to emulate the properties of current materials – as plush as cotton, as lush as silk, and as functional as polyester.
The easily transportable ‘plug and play’ pellets are a game-changer within the material science space, where scalability and feed-stock risks can prohibit accelerated growth. The pellets can be seamlessly integrated into manufacturers’ production processes and the abundant protein raw material comes without the feedstock risks or environmental impact of petroleum.
Simardev S. Gulati, a 3rd generation textile entrepreneur and the Co-founder and CEO of Bloom
Labs shares: ‘Our mission is to make circularity an actuality. We see a future where old resource intensive processes are replaced with cutting-edge sustainable alternatives.’
According to Textile Exchange, the global fibre production has doubled in the last 20 years to 113 million tonnes produced in 2021 and is predicted to continue growing to 149 million tonnes in 2030 should business as usual continue. Increasing the use of recycled fibres and next-gen materials is critical for fashion to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, minimize water consumption, halt negative impacts on biodiversity, and manage its ever-increasing post-consumer waste.
While 8.5% of global fibers produced in 2021 originated from recycled materials (primarily recycled polyester from PET bottles), less than 1% of fibers were produced by recycling existing textiles. Circulatory and material innovations are the key to breaking fashions dependance of fossil fuel and mitigating the impacts of our current linear economic systems.
The current problem is two thirds of global fiber productions are synthetic fibers. Polyester alone has been the most widely produced fibers since the mid-1990s. The problem is these fabrics are fossil fuel based, shed microplastics, and will never biodegrade. Petro-Chemical fiber production requires 1.3 billion barrels of oil each year – more than Spain’s annual oil consumption. These imperishable pieces compile in landfills, often in the global south, or incarcerated, releasing toxic chemicals.
Gulati adds “I stand on the shoulders of giants. Our expert team of interdisciplinary scientists, which includes the inventor of plasticized protein, Walter Schmidt, PhD, are reimagining material sourcing for multiple sectors, and developing commercially feasible alternatives which will create a future of seamless integration, infinite feedstock, and limitless possibilities.”
