Proving that bioplastics do not have to be a downgrade in packaging quality or competitiveness, FlexSea’s proprietary technology allows us to create a seaweed-derived bioplastic with unseen characteristics until now.
FlexSea is an innovative, truly compostable biopolymer material derived from seaweed and other natural, sustainably sourced products.
Highly competitive pricing
Biodegrades rapidly and naturally
No harmful chemicals in manufacturing
No competition with food crops
No waste in production stream
Properties at a glance
1Food packaging
FlexSea is particularly suitable for the packaging of dry food items such as rice, pasta, grains, biscuits and nuts. If it is dry and traditionally comes in a flexible film packaging, FlexSea is the right alternative!
FlexSea’s excellent water vapour and oxygen barrier properties will ensure that the contents will remain safe and fresh for up to 4 months!
PROPERTIES
Highly efficient water vapour and oxygen barrier- Appropriate for dry and semi-dry foods
- Competitive pricing
- Printable and edible
2Dry items
FlexSea is a fantastic material for packaging any dry item, providing a tight seal from oxygen and water vapour. Its specifications are highly modifiable, meaning that any size and shape of item are within scope.
PROPERTIES
- Water vapour and oxygen barrier
- Customisable to product specifications
- Competitive pricing
3Cosmetics
FlexSea is an ideal candidate for the emerging market of sustainable anhydrous cosmetics such as toothpaste bars, cosmetic powders and other sustainable dry products. The water content is removed to lower the carbon impact in their transport: that’s exactly the FlexSea spirit!
PROPERTIES
- Water vapour and oxygen barrier
- Customisable to product specifications
- Competitive pricing
- Transparent and available in a wide range of colours
4Textiles
FlexSea’s natural origin is perfect to carry and protect delicate and precious fabrics throughout the journey from manufacturing to the end consumer.
PROPERTIES
- Protects fabrics to the highest standards
- Customisable to product specifications
- Competitive pricing
Why seeweed?
We passionately believe that seaweed-derived bioplastics, such as FlexSea, are the future of bioplastics.
Exceptionally fast growth
A seaweed plant can grow up to 1 metre a day! It grows throughout the year. An entire cultivation cycle for FlexSea takes as little as 45 days – compared to other bioplastic feedstocks such as sugar cane, taking over a year, and corn and beetroot many months.
No competition with food crops
Current bioplastics compete with arable land. Starch bioplastics are most commonly made of corn, potatoes, beetroot or sugarcane. These compete with food crops and are food crops themselves. Oceans are vast sources of untapped yet sustainable resources: seaweed production is not thought to have a practical limit.
No freshwater required
Contrarily to terrestrial plants, seaweed grows in the ocean, so it does not need any irrigation, that is, the external input of one of the most valuable and increasingly scarce resources we have: freshwater!
No harm to biodiversity or habitats
The creation of arable fields for terrestrial produce destroys habitats and exacerbates deforestation.
No habitats are destroyed in the creation of seaweed farms. Seaweed farms provide stable protected areas that promote the formation of ecosystems and habitats that favour biodiversity, whilst protecting coasts from harsh waves and erosion.
No pesticides or special care required
Sugarcane, corn, beetroot, and potatoes are very chemical and labour intensive.
Seaweed is very low maintenance: it can be grown intensively in high density configurations and requires no pesticides, fertilisers or special care. It basically grows on its own, quickly and efficiently!
No harmful byproducts
FlexSea’s material is earth- and climate- friendly, and the production process to create our biomaterial is too. Unlike most other bioplastics such as PLA, we don’t use harsh chemicals or very high temperatures, and any production “waste” is kept in our loop system so 100% of our raw materials turn out as finished products. Even better: our only waste is harmless water vapour!
CO² sequestration
Seaweed’s incredibly fast growth rate is tightly linked to one of its greatest features. Taking in as much as 2000 tonnes of CO2 per square kilometer of cultivated area, seaweed is one of the greatest Carbon sequestrators known to mankind.
Opportunities for local communities
Millions of individuals in coastal communities around the world rely on seaweed cultivation as their sole source of income. By putting seaweed at the heart of the biomaterials industry, we help provide them with a reliable and predictable inflow of capital that is used to improve lives locally.
The true lungs of the earth
Through algal photosynthesis, seaweed contributes to produce 70% of the world’s oxygen! That is twice as much as all rainforests combined!
FLEXSEA X other solutions
Aren’t there many bioplastics already?
Where the recycling system fails to address even a significant portion of plastic waste, the most rational way to move forward with the plastic pollution issue is to explore alternative solutions.
Traditional bioplastic production results in even greater pollution than petroleum-based plastic. This is because growing the crops used as feedstock for these bioplastics have intensive growth requirements, that over-use dangerous pesticides and chemical fertilisers, depleting the soil over time and occupying valuable arable land. These crops then also need to be heavily processed with chemicals in order to turn them into usable polymers.
‘’Bioplastic does not mean biodegradable’’
Even the so called “compostable” bioplastics often require high temperature industrial composting facilities which are not widespread. Consumers confuse them and throw them in the plastic recycling. However, bioplastics and traditional plastic cannot be recycled together, meaning that entire plastic recycling batches are contaminated and need to be thrown away.
FlexSea‘s use of seaweed as raw material is revolutionary as it doesn’t require pesticides, fertilisers, land or freshwater, thus having a near-zero ecological and environmental impact throughout its life-cycle, whilst seaweed farming preserves ecosystems, protects coasts from erosion and sustains local economies.