Human’s use of synthetic and oil-dependent materials, such as plastic and concrete, has significant environmental issues.
In collaboration with Manchester Science Festival, Sow the City CIC has developed ‘biomaterials’, or mycofacture, by combining agricultural waste with fungal mycelium. The process creates low impact and renewable organic composites that have the potential to replace typical packaging, construction materials and even clothing. Human’s use of synthetic and oil-dependent materials, such as plastic and concrete, has significant environmental issues.
In collaboration with Manchester Science Festival, Sow the City CIC has developed ‘biomaterials’, or mycofacture, by combining agricultural waste with fungal mycelium. The process creates low impact and renewable organic composites that have the potential to replace typical packaging, construction materials and even clothing.
What is mycelium?
Simply put, mycelium is the ‘roots’ of the fungi from which mushrooms grow. The biggest organism on the planet is the Honey Fungus, found in the Blue Mountains of Oregon. It has mycelium spreading 2.4 miles wide. Fungi, as with plants and animals, have their own kingdoms and are vital to all life on earth. Fungus is on our bodies, in our stomachs and under the ground we walk on. Fungus can sense and react to light, temperature and eats toxic chemicals. They can even generate electrical signals. In fact, researchers are looking into using them for developing bio-computers!
How is it made?
To develop our Sow the City mycelium composites for Manchester Science Festival, we prepared and sterilised growing substrates like straw, vegetable husks and spent grain and inoculated them with mycelium. We tested a variety of fungus types including locally foraged species and more exotic varieties such as pink oyster mushrooms. We left the inoculated substrate at carefully controlled temperatures to create a variety of different composites with different biological properties. After specific growing times our mycelium blocks were heat treated to stop their growth and prepared with an organic coating to make them water resistant.
Why is it a useful alternative?
Mycelium composites have the potential to provide sustainable solutions in lots of different areas. They have several advantages over traditional materials including their low cost, density and energy consumption, their ability to biodegrade, and their low carbon footprint. In the future they could offer a direct replacement for plastic-based packaging such as polystyrene and cardboard, and they have useful fire-retardant properties for use in the construction industry for products such as insulation boards.
Our plans
Sow the City has a plan to test out new fungal species and processes to develop new materials. We’re looking at growing mycelium composites to help with the development of our Boiler House HQ and are interested in finding new practical applications for this technology. It’s not too late to avoid or limit some of the worse effects of climate change but we need to kick our addiction to oil. Our work with Manchester Science Festival helps us raise awareness about how mycelium can create a more circular low-carbon economy, and we’re looking forward to discovering more about the potential of this miracle material.