Treekind® certified as 100% biobased by the USDA
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Biophilica has earned the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Certified Biobased Product Label for Treekind®, Biophilica's home-compostable, plastic-free leather alternative made from leaves. Treekind® is the first leather alternative made in the UK to achieve this certification.
The USDA BioPreferred® Program strives to increase the development, purchase, and use of biobased products and outlines the portion of a product that comes from a renewable source, such as plant or marine feedstocks. The certification is administered through third-party verification. Biophilica achieved a certification of 100% biobased.
To earn the accreditation, Biophilica had to meet stringent criteria, provide comprehensive documentation and undergo third party lab testing to verify its biobased claims; tasks that came after years of significant R&D work, as well as investment in new materials and technologies.
Biobased products like Treekind® exist to help address climate change by offering renewable alternatives to petroleum-based products. While there are many plant-based leather alternatives on the market already, there are very few that are truly free of polyurethane (PU). Plastic is used in leather alternatives to achieve a desirable finish, however it means those materials cannot be recycled or home-composted.
Developed in the Biophilica London laboratory, Treekind® mixes lignocellulose from urban and agricultural sources to create a flexible, leather-like material. It is recyclable and home compostable thanks to its formulation of lignocellulose (from tree leaves) and a natural binder, which is designed to break down in soil or water within one year, with the help of microbes. Fully scaled, 1kg of Treekind® material uses less than 0.1% of the water used in conventional leather processing, has zero toxic chemicals in its formulation, and because of its plant content, boasts a significantly reduced carbon footprint compared to animal leather.
Not only does the USDA 100% Biobased label help Biophilica cement brand positioning and clearly provide market differentiation with Treekind®, but it importantly makes it easier for brands and their end customers to trust the claims made and make informed purchasing decisions. To add to the credibility, the certification is not a one-time process, but requires ongoing compliance, so all of Biophilica’s stakeholders can be sure that at all times, what they say is what they do.
Vernell Thompson from the USDA BioPreferred Program says:
“By having their products become USDA Certified Biobased, Biophilica Ltd. joins an expanding list of businesses combating inaccurate marketing claims and the practice of greenwashing, while also contributing to a thriving bioeconomy that decreases our reliance on petroleum."
Mira Nameth, Biophilica’s CEO and Co-Founder says:
"We are contacted every single day by brands searching for truly biobased materials. Achieving the USDA BioPreferred® Certification is a huge milestone for Treekind® because it offers a very tangible, and internationally recognised confirmation of our material's plant-based credentials. Biobased materials are the future and we're excited to offer companies solutions to transition to more sustainable means of production. While the Biophilica team always knew that Treekind is 100% biobased, now brands and end customers know it too.”