Australian biotechnology company Nanollose has raised $2.85m to fund the development and commercialisation of its tree-free Nullarbor lyocell fibre.
Nullarbor is said to be finer than silk and significantly stronger than conventional lyocell that is traditionally produced from wood pulp.
The capital raised from investors will help the company to “progress the pilot production phase to produce sufficient quantities of fibre to enable commercial agreements with fashion brands,” says Nanollose executive chairman, Dr Wayne Best.
Nanollose Limited uses an eco-friendly fermentation process to grow fibres based on various streams from the food and agricultural industries.
In January, it filed a joint patent application with R&D partner, Grasim Industries for its high tenacity lyocell fibre made from microbial cellulose, and continues to work with Grasim to develop the technology.
