Plastics : Plant-Based Materials

Many everyday products we use contain materials made from crude oil, from the food we eat to the lotion we put on our skin. Now, companies developing natural alternatives to these oil-based ingredients are seeing renewed investor interest.

What's happening now:

Swiss startup Bloom Biorenewables just raised $15 million from investors. They're one of many companies trying to replace oil-based chemicals with plant-based ones. 

While $15 million isn't huge, it signals that investors are becoming interested in this area again.

Simple examples:

Bloom takes plant waste that would normally be thrown away and extracts lignin and cellulose from plants

Lignin:  tough, complex polymer that gives wood its rigidity and strength.
Cellulose: the main structural component in plant cell walls; a carbohydrate that forms the fibers in wood, cotton, and paper.

These materials can replace oil-based ingredients in:

• Cosmetics (like face creams and makeup)
• Perfumes
• Food additives
• Packaging materials

Example: instead of using petroleum-derived ingredients in face cream, they might use processed plant fibers that work just as well but come from renewable sources.

The money picture:

This sector has been on a rollercoaster:

• 2022: record funding of $1.7 billion
• 2023: sharp drop to $583 million
• First 3 months of 2025: $392 million (showing recovery)

Recent success stories include:

• Tidal Vision (USA): raised $140 million to make chemicals from crab and shrimp shells
• Pulpex (UK): raised $80 million to make bottles from wood pulp instead of plastic

Companies taking action:

Some major businesses are adopting these alternatives:

• Hyosung (world's largest spandex maker): committed $1 billion to use sugarcane instead of oil
• L'Oréal (world's biggest cosmetics company): promised that 95% of their ingredients will come from natural sources by 2030

Political Context:

The political landscape affects this industry:

• In Europe: tighter regulations on potentially harmful chemicals are helping this sector
• In the United States: the change in administration has created uncertainty, as the previous government's support for biomanufacturing was recently withdrawn