Mycelium + Hemp
Developed in 2007 by Ecovative Design, Mushroom® Packaging is made from mycelium and is a high performing packaging solution, cost competitive with conventional foams, and 100% home compostable.
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Agricultural Waste
We work with regional farmers to source our non-food agricultural waste which is ground, sorted, and cleaned before growing.
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Mycelium
Mycelium, the vegetative root structure of a mushroom, is added to the mix and binds the ag waste together - we like to think of mycelium as nature’s glue.
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Mushroom® Materials
After a few days of growth, Mushroom® Products are ready to use!
Production Process
1. The Growth Trays are made out of PET plastic, which is reusable and recyclable. They are created by thermoforming over a solid form (precisely milled by a CNC router) to create the molded shape.
2. The Growth Trays are then filled with a mix of substrate (hemp), nutrition (flour), and mycelium which are sealed to grow for 6 days total.
3. After 4 days, we pop parts out of the mold and let them grow for another 2 days to get a velvety layer of overgrowth. The final stage is to dry the parts to prevent future growth.
Past and Present Partners
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Seed Health
January 2018- Present
High VolumeSeed Health is a probiotic company concerned with the overall health of humans and the environment as a whole. With the understanding that everything is connected, they chose to be mindful with how their health-promoting product is packaged. Mushroom Packaging serves as an elegant solution to their search for a high performing compostable alternative to foam.
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Keap
June 2018- Present
Medium VolumeDedicated to sustainability, Keap is working with Ecovative to package their products. Keap is based out of Brooklyn and makes hand-poured candles. Ecovative designed a compostable packaging insert, helping Keap reach their sustainability goals. Keap has taken it one step further and worked to create an entirely compostable package, complete with compostable tape and shipping label.
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Rich Brilliant Willing (RBW)
June 2013-Present
Medium VolumeFor Rich Brilliant Willing (RBW), a designer and manufacturer of LED-based lighting solutions for architectural interiors based in New York City, it was important to offer customers a premium product experience, which meant starting with a great unboxing experience.
“When a customer orders a high-end product, the manufacturer places a great deal of value on presentation and making sure the product looks good in its package,” says Theo Richardson, co-founder and partner of RBW. “The simplistic nature of Ecovative Mushroom® Packaging was a perfect complement to our energy-efficient lighting offerings, and we knew we wanted to be among the first companies to tell this story and offer such an innovative package.” Ahead of the first distribution, our Mushroom® Packaging solution was introduced through a featured article in Packaging World Magazine.
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Merck Forest
July 2013-Present
Low VolumeMerck Forest and Farmland Center is an education non-profit that strives to teach and demonstrate innovative and sustainable management of forest and farmland. On their 3,000 acre property, Merck has a Vermont-certified organic sugarbush, which produced nearly 1,000 gallons of syrup in 2015.
Mushroom® Packaging has brought them one step closer to their sustainable goal by allowing them to move away from using foam shipping containers. So far customer reviews have been positive, and Merck hopes that other sugarmakers will start to consider alternative means, like Mushroom® Packaging, for shipping their maple products too.
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Dell
April 2011-2017
High VolumeIn partnership with Dell, Ecovative designed high performance, biodegradable packaging components to replace EPE-polyethylene foam parts that provide cushioning and bracing in large packages for Dell servers. Dell’s packages tip the scales at over 200lbs (90kg) each, and their sensitive servers require the utmost protection. Our packaging design team worked with Dell's packaging engineers to create a shape that would protect the hard drives from experiencing damaging G loads in the event of a drop.
