• Octarine Bio Partners with Portuguese Textile Leaders to Scale Bio-Based Dyes

• NFW Winds Down Operations Amid Sector Headwinds

• Spiber Showcases New Brewed Protein™ prototypes

• Spiber Opens the Door to Large-Scale Food Collaborations

• Latest Circ® Partnership Places it into the Supply Chains of Major Brands

The BioDesign Newsletter

Issue #053

The biodesign sector is navigating a difficult landscape: closures, funding pressures, and strategic wind-downs are echoing past struggles like Renewcell. Yet despite the turbulence, the fire, resilience, and sense of community remain undiminished. Our takeaway from the recent developments — the headwinds are real, but so is the resolve, and the world of biodesign is quietly but steadily reinforcing its foundations.

Octarine Bio Partners with Portuguese Textile Leaders to Scale Bio-Based Dyes

Octarine Bio has entered a strategic partnership with Portuguese textile leaders Impetus Group, Acatel, and Positive Materials to industrialise PurePalette™, Octarine’s bio-based dyes. The collaboration spans the full textile value chain—dye production, fabric dyeing, finishing, and garment manufacturing—and is backed by a three-year offtake agreement. By testing and integrating PurePalette™ in real production environments, the partners aim to demonstrate significant reductions in toxic inputs and achieve up to 70% lower dyeing-related carbon emissions, without compromising performance or versatility. This initiative positions PurePalette™ as ready for industrial adoption and sets the stage for future collaborations with global fashion brands seeking lower-impact solutions.

NFW Winds Down Operations Amid Sector Headwinds

Natural Fiber Welding (NFW), the Illinois-based innovator behind Mirum, has announced it is winding down operations after years of turbulent performance. While CEO Steve Zika emphasised this is not a full closure and the company is still “exploring options,” the move leaves around 15 employees facing an uncertain future. NFW had drawn $1 million from a $3 million county-backed credit line, underscoring the financial strain. The development highlights the ongoing challenges biodesign companies face in scaling breakthrough materials despite strong brand interest, echoing earlier struggles like Renewcell. NFW’s difficulties underscore both the risks of commercialising at scale and the potential opportunities for other players to build on its pioneering work.

Spiber Showcases Brewed Protein™ Prototypes and Expands into Nutrition Sector

Spiber showcased two new prototypes that use Brewed Protein™ at the Biofab Fair in London. One was a protein-based finish that offers a soft feel with durable properties, and a protein-based surface that creates a coating with similar properties to a leather textile.

The biotechnology company also announced that they are expanding beyond the realm of textiles production and into the nutritional sector. Spiber shared that their scalable platform allows for research from both a gram and tonne scale and invited those looking for animal-free protein alternatives to get in touch to pursue large-scale food application partnerships.

Circ® Secures Five-Year Supply Deal with Arvind Limited

Textiles recycling company, Circ® has gone beyond the brands and signed a five-year deal with Arvind Limited in India. Arvind Limited is one of the world’s largest suppliers of fabrics to global brands. This partnership outlines Arvind’s commitment to purchasing Circ ® lyocell fibre and recycled polyester chips for integration into their large-scale manufacturing process. This will plug Circ® directly into the supply chain across renowned brands.

Pressing Pause, but the Story Goes On

Over the past year, this newsletter has become a place where we share breakthroughs, spotlight bold ideas and market shifts and connect with a community that cares deeply about shaping a more sustainable future.

We’re stepping back for a short while. Not because the news has slowed (far from it, as you can tell from this issue!) – because we are working on something bigger. Something we think you’ll love.

Here’s what we can say for now:

✨ The breakthrough stories aren’t going anywhere and will continue to be published, so please do keep getting in touch, and we can keep sharing the incredible work being done.

✨ What’s coming next will take into account everything you’ve told us you value, the insights, the discoveries, and the behind-the-scenes look at innovation.

✨ The door will remain open, we’re just putting the newsletter on pause while we build what’s coming next.

Stay tuned!

For those who stay with us, you will have exclusive access to occasional insights from us, and you’ll be the first to know when we’re ready to lift the curtain on what we are working on.

Until then, thank you for reading, sharing, and being part of this journey. The best is yet to come.

Ariyana & the House of BioDesign team

The BioDesign Newsletter is an independent publication.

© 2025 House of BioDesign Limited. All rights reserved.