Malai Biocomposite: The New Vegan Leather
Made from coconut water waste, this flexible, leather-like biocomposite sheet is based on bacterial cellulose and provides a sustainable alternative to real and faux leather. The company, Malai Design & Materials, works alongside coconut farmers and processing centers in Southern India that find themselves with too much coconut wastewater. Normally, this wastewater would be released into drainage systems, but this can lead to water pollution and the surrounding soil to become acidified.
How It’s Made
Malai Design & Materials places the wastewater into vats for sterilization, resulting in an entirely natural, energy-rich nutrient upon which bacterial culture can feed when combined. The fermentation period takes between twelve to fourteen days.
At the end of this process, a sheet of cellulose ‘jelly’ is produced. This jelly undergoes another process of refinement by enriching it with natural fibers, gums, and resins to create a more durable and flexible material. The end product is sustainable, biodegradable, water resistant, and vegan.
Sizes & Applications
Malai Biocomposite is available in 1.09 yd x 1.09 yd (1 m x 1 m) sheets with a 0.04 in to 0.08 in (1 mm to 2 mm) thickness. Colors can be made using natural dyes such as indigo, cutch, myrobalan, brazilwood, madder, and turmeric. The material can also be sewn, laser cut, 3D molded, and embossed or printed onto.
Applications include fashion, accessories, bags, packaging, stationery, interior surfaces, and furnishings. For future use, this material prior to the refinement stage is very promising in various fields such as the cosmetic industry for making rejuvenating face masks, food industry as a thickener or a dessert, or in the medical industry for developing biocompatible body implants.
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