When synthetics were first developed they were created to mimic natural materials, but as our mastery over them grew they developed their own aesthetics and performance criteria.

As we develop this new generation of materials made with biology we are currently referencing them to both the naturals and synthetics of the past.

Produce
pigments

There are many naturally occurring organisms that produce color. One example is Streptomyces Coelicolor - this soil bacteria has amazing capabilities, including producing antibiotics and secreting blue pigments.

S. coelicolor isn’t the only microbe used for producing color, there are many other organisms (from bacteria, to yeast and mycelium) found in nature that produce a rainbow of pigments and dyes.

Grow
cement

Non-modified bacteria, also known as wild types, that biologically form limestone have been found in environments across the world. They enable us to grow cement in the same way that coral reefs do.

Rather than depleting the world’s limestone reserves working with these types of bacteria allows us to be restorative rather then extractive. Particularly important when concrete production accounts for 8% of global CO2 emissions.

Feed on
emissions

One of the most exciting developments in biotechnology today is ‘gas fermentation’ as an alternative feedstock to sugar. This is a process by which a microbe, instead of being fed sugar from a crop such as corn as its primary nutrient, can instead be fed carbon emissions. This has the double effect of helping to reduce climate warming emissions while producing a valuable chemical.

An example of this in action is Lanzatech who use gas fermentation to produce ethanol as a precursor chemical for polyester. This wonder microbe is naturally occurring not genetically modified.