Bioplastic made from fish waste reels in UK Dyson Award

24 Sep 2019 --- MarinaTex, a bioplastic made from fish waste, is the UK national winner of the James Dyson Award and could provide an environmentally-friendly alternative to single-use plastics. The James Dyson Award is an international accolade that celebrates designers with innovative, problem-solving ideas. Designed by Lucy Hughes, a recent graduate of the University of Sussex, the biodegradable material is resource-light and requires little energy and temperatures under 100 degrees to be produced. The format of a translucent and flexible sheet material enables its use in a wide range of single-use packaging, including sandwich containers and tissue boxes.

“More R&D is needed before commercialization as this was an undergraduate project. This will include material development and also infrastructure development. The time frame is looking like two years if all goes to plan. Roadblocks include manufacturing techniques and integration into current manufacturing,” Hughes tells PackagingInsights.

Hughes also mentions that a key R&D challenge relates to sterilization and the curing environment due to the organic materials used.

MarinaTex uses organic fish waste ordinarily destined for landfill or incineration and locally sourced red algae to bind together the fish proteins. One Atlantic cod could generate enough organic waste for 1,400 bags of MarinaTex. It biodegrades in four to six weeks and is suitable for home composting. Her initial testing suggests that as well as being safer and much more sustainable than traditional oil-based plastic, the plastic is also strong due to its durable overlapping bonds.

“The alternative to traditional plastics uses red algae to bind together proteins from fish waste.All the components that make up the material are food-grade safe, so there is no toxic molecular transfer,” notes Hughes. A recent study, which found that over 4,000 chemicals are used in modern-day plastic packaging production – meaning that it is becoming increasingly difficult to ensure safety standards, could make this innovation all the more lucrative.

“MarinaTex in its current form is ideal for single-use packaging that does not need to be airtight. These include the likes of bakery bags, plastic bags and outer packaging windows. We are working on reducing the porosity of the material so it can keep food fresher for longer,” continues Hughes. 

Hughes has won £2,000 (US$2,497), which will be put toward tests and to understand the material in more detail. She will also spend it on gaining the certifications needed for marketing, including those pertaining to food-grade safety, allergies, biodegradability and nutritional value, as the material is edible. She will also invest in tweaking the formula so that the material can be used in more conditions. 

She also goes forward to the international final in November, where she could win the grand prize of £30,000 (US$37,455). “The award has given the material amazing coverage and interest from all over the globe. Hopefully, these new connections and collaborations will prove fruitful,” Hughes concludes. 

An Australian start-up also recently entered the marine bioplastic space, with a biodegradable material developed from the chitin and cellulose contained in crustacean skeletons. Meanwhile, Novamont’s Mater-Bi bioplastic was shown to biodegrade in the sea with similar efficiency as cellulosic materials, like paper. 

By Katherine Durrell