Leather bag made of fungus
From crummy food scraps to a stylish leather bag. In a new project, researchers from KTH Royal Institute of Technology and other institutions will investigate how biotechnology can be used to produce sustainable leather from the food we throw away.
One third of all food produced is thrown away. The decomposition of food waste also causes large amounts of greenhouse gases, totalling ten percent of global emissions. Researchers from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, the University of Borås and Karlstad University will now use food waste to produce fungal leather.
There are several sustainability benefits. Fungal leather can also replace natural leather and ordinary artificial leather, both of which have a negative environmental impact.
"I think the material has great potential for various accessories such as wallets, belts and handbags,"says Minna Hakkarainen, professor at the Department of Polymer Technology at KTH, who also hopes that products for vehicle interiors, such as steering wheel upholstery, may be considered.
Grown on food waste
The research builds on previous projects that have shown that filamentous fungi grown on food waste can be used to produce medical textiles and fungal leather. Now the aim is, among other things, to streamline the fungal cultivation process, to scale up and to strengthen the durability and mechanical properties of the fungal leather.
In particular, KTH contributes to the quality improvement of the "leather" through modification using green chemistry.
"We will improve the performance and durability of the fungal material, produced at the University of Borås, to reach the quality and feel required for real-world applications," says Hakkarainen.
Environmental impact of the fashion industry
The researchers are collaborating with partners from the fashion and car industries, who will develop prototypes for certain products. Today, the production of natural leather is a major contributor to the environmental impact of the fashion industry through greenhouse gas emissions. Other challenges include the ethical aspects of animal husbandry, which also requires significant resources in land and animal feed.
"There are also steps in leather production where harmful chemicals are used and pollute the environment through wastewater discharges," says Hakkarainen.
Ordinary artificial leather, on the other hand, usually has a shorter lifespan and is made of materials that may contain substances harmful to the environment and health.
The researchers hope that, if the research project is successful, products made of fungal leather could be available in shops within a few years.
Text: Christer Gummeson ( gummeson@kth.se )