{"id":8131,"date":"2024-05-01T11:24:40","date_gmt":"2024-05-01T08:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greencubator.info\/?page_id=8131"},"modified":"2024-05-03T14:00:03","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T11:00:03","slug":"the-story-of-s-lab","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/greencubator.info\/en\/the-story-of-s-lab\/","title":{"rendered":"Replacing plastic. How S.Lab created packaging from mushrooms and hemp"},"content":{"rendered":"
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    A WORLD WITHOUT PLASTIC<\/h4>\n

    How S.Lab grows organic packaging to replace polystyrene<\/span><\/h5>\n
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      \u201cWhen can the world refuse plastic?\u201d\u00a0 we ask the co-founder of the Ukrainian company S.Lab a philosophical and dreamlike question.\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n
      \u201cMaybe never,\u201d\u00a0 says Julia Bialetska.<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
      The entrepreneur and her husband, Eugene Tomilin, clearly realised the scale of the plastic waste crisis during a trip to Indonesia. There, the local picturesque beaches were covered with mountains of rubbish.\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n
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      \u201cWe analysed the market offers and quickly realised that there was no full-fledged replacement for plastic. For example, alternatives to plastic packaging do not have the necessary characteristics for product manufacturers, such as water resistance and thermal insulation,\u201d explains Julia.<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
      That lack of quality alternatives motivated Julia and <\/span>Eugene <\/span>to launch S.Lab in 2021 and create their 100% biodegradable packaging for products made from a combination of two plant-based components \u2014 mushroom mycelium and hemp fibres. At the same time, the product has the same features as polystyrene.<\/span><\/h5>\n
      The idea turned out to be so in demand in the market that S.Lab is now running out of time to process customer orders. Today, the company, founded in Ukraine, builds production lines in Spain and Japan and intends to change the packaging industry in the European and Asian markets. How? Read on to find out.<\/span><\/h5>\n
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      The story of S.Lab is a part of the series \"The Cream of the Crop of Ukrainian Cleantech\"<\/a>. It features 10 cleantech champions who received Climate Innovation Vouchers at a critical stage of their development. Climate Innovation Vouchers is one of the largest grant programs in Ukraine for innovators in green and climate-friendly technologies. It was initiated by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and funded by the European Union. Greencubator implements the program in Ukraine.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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      \n\t\t\t\t\t\tPackaging with care for nature \t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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      As the basis for the future material, Julia Bialetska and Eugene Tomilin chose one of the strongest natural fibres in Ukraine \u2014 industrial hemp.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n
      Industrial hemp is a source of natural fibre from which Ukrainians have historically made clothes, shoes, and ship ropes. Moreover, this material is widely used in construction today. Due to its strength, hemp became an ideal base for the couple's product.\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n
      The next step was finding a substance that would bond the fibres. An ordinary glue did not work, as it is also synthetic. Instead, the couple found a \"natural glue\" \u2014 mushroom mycelium.\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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      (The S.Lab package consists of only two plant-based ingredients<\/sub>)<\/sub><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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      The entrepreneurs made prototypes of their products with the Botanical Institute in Kyiv. Here, scientists confirmed the concept's viability and helped grow the first crop of mycelium. Shortly afterwards, the first products made from the new material were produced.<\/span><\/h5>\n
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      \u201cWe started to believe in the project when we sold the first samples,\u201d recalls Julia Bialetska.\u00a0<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/blockquote>\n
      Back then, one of S.Lab's first clients was a restaurant that ordered eco-friendly decor for its interior. The couple made vases, chandeliers, and other products for the restaurant. That became the startup's starting point. <\/span><\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>
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