Nanollose ((NC6))
Most folk would be unaware that producing rayon for use in clothing and other textiles requires about 150m trees to be felled annually.
Cotton’s not the answer either, because it’s a water and pesticide-intensive crop. Polyester, nylon and acrylics are produced from petrochemicals.
The Perth-based Nanollose has devised a fermentation process to convert plant-based materials to woven and non-woven fibres for use in clothing and other applications such as disposable wipes.
The process involves microbes (bacteria) naturally fermenting liquid waste from effluents and food industry by-products into cellulose, the basis of most textiles.
Initially, the company is targeting the $23 billion a year rayon market, but along the way it’s made a wee diversion by investing $200,000 in a filtration company called CelluAir. Based on nanocellulose, CelluAir’s technology is relevant for applications including – you guessed it – face masks.
This topical diversion aside, Nanollose’s key product is a viscose-rayon fibre called Nullarbor, derived from waste from the agricultural, food and beverage industries.
The company has struck a collaboration deal with India’s Grasim Industries, a global rayon producer and an arm of the Aditya Birla conglomerate. It also has an exclusive tie-up with Europe’s Codi Group, which makes seven billion personal wipes a year.
The process was discovered by chance by winemaker and agricultural scientist Gary Cass, who observed that a bad batch of wine had fermented and dried into a leather-like material.
The $6m market cap Nanollose potentially is in the right place at the right time, given fashion brands including Zara and H&M have pledged to use only sustainable materials by the end of the next decade.
Prada has also taken out a $65m loan which involves meeting sustainability benchmarks, so maybe the Devil isn’t wearing its apparel after all.
Meanwhile, CEO Alf Germano has resigned for personal reasons, having led the company since 2017.
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