Seeding a Biomaterials Industry in West Michigan: Sustainable Materials Workshop and Showcase

Regenerative biomaterial innovation network Materiom and Michigan Sustainable Business Forum last year launched a byproduct value chain mapping initiative for West Michigan, identifying opportunities to upcycle food waste from local farms, food processors, restaurants and food and beverage manufacturers into new products.
With support from the Wege Foundation, Google.org and other partners, this initiative has now produced a toolkit to support entrepreneurs, product designers, sustainability professionals, researchers and other private and public stakeholders in the development of new products and materials derived from locally produced food waste and organic byproducts.
The initiative is hosting a strategic workshop to introduce businesses and stakeholders in the manufacturing, packaging, textile and food system value chain to the emerging biomaterials industry through a half-day of panel discussions and exercises. A sustainable materials showcase will demonstrate material samples and applications currently or potentially available for local use, or that could be made from local feedstock.