MY-FI project ambition is to develop a mycelium-based fabric that is biodegradable and does not release micro-plastics, to drive the textile industry to a more sustainable and circular economy. Therefore, within the MY-FI project, Normec OWS is investigating the biodegradation behavior and the suitability for treatment by organic recycling such as industrial compostability and anaerobic digestion.

The first results look promising. The basic mycelium produced by Mogu showed complete biodegradation as defined by EN 13432, setting requirements for industrial compostable materials.

At this moment, the disintegration behavior of the mycelium fabric, produced via surface liquid fermentation, is investigated in pilot-scale composting process to examine the degradation behavior.

Although testing is still running, it can already be concluded that the raw fabric has the potential to tackle this hurdle. These tests will form the basis for the evaluation of the final MY-FI materials. To be suitable for commercial applications several processing steps and coatings will be applied, which might affect the biodegradation behavior. The impact of these treatments will be carefully examined to result in a sustainable, biodegradable commercial fabric.