Key facts:
- Lactips, a French startup raises €13M to sustain its development from BPI and the Corporate VC (CVC) of Mitsubishi Chemical
- The startup has created water-soluble, biodegradable plastic substitute made of casein (a milk protein) that is edible (even if it is not its goal to market edible cutlery) and has a much lower impact on the environment than other plastics.
- This deals come just one year after a deal with another major chemical company, the Germany-based BASF, to use Lactips’ products
- While being water-soluble, Lactips products can carry food and may find massive adoption in this industry
Why it matters – DigitalFoodLab’s opinion:
As mentioned with Apeel, which has raised $250M recently, startups working on smarter packagings which can lessen the impact on the environment or reduce food waste, are on the rise.
While, the approach of Lactips is more industrial and B2B than Apeel’s, comparing the two startups gives a glimpse of the difference between the startup ecosystem and their respective cultures in France/Europe and the US:
- US-based Apeel was able to attract stars such as Katy Perry, Oprah Winfrey and tech moguls such as Bill Gates. It is now leveraging its fame to put a high price tag on its solution and market it directly to retailers which themselves are marketing it to the final consumers.
- France-based Lactips is much more in the shadows but is working deals with major chemical partners (and apparently not doing the distribution by itself).
Now, the product is mostly use for chemicals and home detergents. Lactips product could have a bright future in food, notably in products which themselves claim to have a lower impact on the environment such as plant-based burgers.
