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Let’s break .07 today as what has been accomplished settles into the world of science and investing.
You nailed it!
https://www.cleantech.com/where-synthetic-biology-meets-textiles/
Where Synthetic Biology Meets Textiles
Posted on August 1, 2018 by Lily Lin
Synthetic biology is an interdisciplinary field combining biology and engineering that is being applied to textiles where living organisms have the potential to become both the machine and operating system of bio-fibers and bio-fabrics. Two notable areas of innovation are producing bio-leather (biologically identical lab grown) and spider silk.
Demand Push Towards Cultured Leather
The global leather goods market was USD $93.2 billion in 2016 and will reach USD $121.16 billion by 2022 at a CAGR of 4.47% during the forecasted period. Within this large addressable market, market dynamics are challenging top brands and creating opportunities for alternative clean leather companies as part of the large sustainability focus. Nike was one of the earlier big brands to make sustainability a key issue, which was recognized by financial analysts at the time. Fast fashion giants Zara, H&M, TOPSHOP and Asos have also introduced their own sustainable ranges.
Faux or artificial leather, usually made from petroleum derivatives and undergo harsh chemical treatments to mimic the appearance of leather, has been used as an affordable alternative to leather but often create some different environmental problems of their own. Reliance on artificial leather could become a source of reputational risks for consumer brands as sustainability goes beyond simply replacing leather to consider what the replacement is made from and the environmental impact of production.
Using genetic engineering and tissue engineering techniques, companies like Modern Meadow, Provenance Biofabrics and VitroLabs are making bio-leather, leather that is biologically-identical to genuine leather but grown without animals. These companies have the potential to become disruptive in the leather market that has not seen much sustainable innovation, both by producing leather in an ethical and sustainable way, and by producing superior leather that is free of natural imperfections.
Modern Meadow pivoted to the leather market from the meat industry, making leather from yeast-expressed collagen, the primary component of skin, at costs that are on par with traditional leather. Modern Meadow has raised USD $50 million in funding and is currently working to bring ZoaTM to market by 2019. The material can take on any shape or form and can be applied in different ways, including spray-painting and binding. Provenance Biofabrics, an earlier stage company, also uses cell-expressed collagen to create leather. Provenance Biofabrics is working to extend its tissue engineering technology to other animal cells to synthesize exotic hides such as crocodile and ostrich. If successful, it has the potential to disrupt and broaden the exotic leather market by making what was previously a highly exclusive material accessible to a wider group of consumers.
A “reimagine” graphic T-shirt made using Modern Meadow’s ZoaTM
The Market Pull for Spider Silk
Spider silk, often referred to as the super silk, is five times stronger than steel, more elastic and waterproof than silkworm silk with applications from apparel to medicine. Unfortunately, spiders are territorial and cannibalistic making farming a difficult venture. With the advancement of science, companies can now use genetically engineering hosts (e.g. yeasts, silkworms and goats) to express spider silk, and for the first time, the commercialization of spider silk is within sight. In the near term, the market size will be limited only by the output of the innovative companies venturing into bio-synthetic production.
Two companies lead the pack, with Bolt Threads at USD $221 million in paid-in capital, and Spiber at USD $144 million. While the two have slightly different technologies (Bolt Threads works with yeast and Spiber works with E.coli), they have both established development and channel partnerships with brands such as Stella McCartney and The North Face and have developed prototype consumer products. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories is targeting a different market. Together with the US Army, it is developing its spider silk technology to use in protective textiles, and has started to establish a supply chain in Vietnam. Kraig Biocraft Laboratories is undergoing its first phase of commercialization scale up in Quang Nam where it plans to construct a factory to support its expected output needs.
Left: A dress made with Bolt Thread’s Spider Silk by Stella McCartney. Middle: The Moon Parka, a special edition coat from The North Face made with Spiber spider silk. Right: The US Army is testing body armor made from genetically engineered spider silk.
Outlook
Synthetic biology is only beginning to be applied to the textiles industry, and companies are already offering both process and product innovations that allow superior materials to be made in more sustainable methods. There are also companies, for example Algiknit and Algalife, that are working on making potentially carbon-negative textile and dyes from algae. Keep an eye on this space to see how these technologies develop.
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You are match maker extraordinaire! I have a wish list on the bio medical side but I am sure given your track record that you could make the perfect match. Yankee Cupid!
Does it bother anyone else that our transgenic catapillars are referred to as worms? It “bugs” the **** out of me! ;)
Feels good to see that the dominoes to commercialization are falling finally. We are getting there. Good to be long. Let’s make some money!
Very thorough list TRUTH. Thanks for that!
You are welcome
Love it!
Right On, Red! There is a big picture. It’s nice to step back from all the trees and look at the forest occasionally! Get them while they are cheap Ole Boy! I’ve accumulated a nice stash these days. I think all this may work out after all.
I can feel it in me bones! We are getting close.
Yes! Thanx Lebbe1
“They got this far, I'm beginning to be a convert! “
Glad you see the light.
Get on board the global KBLB train.
It seems that if Kim were selling a lot of shares at the end of the day the price would’ve gone substantially down. Rather. It looks like lots of green paint from a giant bucket using a mop as a paintbrush. Big money is starting to smell the coffee.
Cheap cheap cheap. Buy buy buy!!!
Thanx rayo!
jazz710, I am hoping you will give the board your insight into today’s PR without giving the competition even a hint of help. Just layman’s terms for the armchair scientists among us.
Thanks man.
KB
I was thinking the same thing. Well said Danish Dragon.
Thanks again for all the good due diligence information Truth.
If Mr. Arcidiacono compares apples to apples we are in good shape.
“ The company’s founder went on CNN and called the Trump administration “evil.””
Sense Patagonia has such a grasp of the obvious I imagine they will eventually leave the goo makers for silk that’s “silkier than silk” and environmentally friendly. Go KBLB!
Hello Red, I really like that photograph of our transgenic silk moth atop those beautiful big cocoons. Our bad ass bugs are going to disrupt the worldwide mundane silk market and create amazing new markets in technical textiles. Yep. Get them while they are cheap! Glad I already got mine.
KB
Maybe, but I can forgive them if they are in the throes of making the magic happen in Vietnam. It’s great news.
That was a great post.
“Holding forever and averaging down are terrible trading strategies (including KBLB).”
Regarding KBLB this strategy has me I believe in an excellent position going forward.
Very well said.
“ The future is made in the laboratory”.
We are finally in yesterday‘s future.
Today’s future is looking pretty damn good also.
And don’t forget about tomorrow’s future.
Lots of pipelines for KBLB to eventually open.
KBLB is not a penny stock. It is a stock that sells for pennies.
-Quote from an anonymous wise man.
I’m trying to curb my enthusiasm. However I don’t believe the news of Vietnam has really sunk in to the investment community. They will catch on and we will be glad we were here first. Our technology will have endless applications to so many fields. The medical applications are fascinating if not right around the corner. Who knows, that could be closer than we think. We seem to be truly at the threshold of manufacturing protective clothing, probably initially underwear I’m guessing for the US military made right here in the United States. Additionally I see a worldwide under garment industry taking off out of Vietnam. (Among other things) This video accurately represents my visualization. Go KBLB!
https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2017/08/us-army-boosts-spending-genetically-engineered-spider-silk-possible-use-body-armor-soldier-underwear/139923/
I know we have to walk before we can run and it appears that we are indeed mobile but I am looking forward, if we don’t opt for a buyout, to maybe a medical subsidiary being formed to work on a wide range of topics with amazing researchers finding valuable opportunities for our silks. It’s hard to imagine all the possibilities but I like trying. Happy weekend reading.
https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/4/17318362/silk-health-medicine-wounds-genetic-engineering-strength
Is it “ talking out your other opening “ or FOS? But yes Red. This is visionary and I’m happy to be part of it in a small way as an investor who is all in. I’ve had discussions with Kim years ago and watched him for an extended period presenting to various groups at the trade show he attended years ago in Atlanta. He has a vision and is making some big strides towards it lately. It’s a pleasure to feel the buzz and excitement slowly building as we can now see a tiny beam of light getting brighter at the end of the commercialization tunnel. Get’r Done!
You ain’t seen nothing yet.
I imagine that when the deep pocket whales who have to this point backed the spider silk goo makers see the accuracy of the two paragraphs I have posted below from the latest PR that they will change horses and bet on the winner buying KBLB stock. BRING IT. Ha... we should all feel good about getting in this race early and sailing with the right boat and captain. Good job Kim. Keep it coming! Pardon the mixed metaphors. ;)
—————————————-
The Company’s advanced silk production platform was designed specifically to fit within and utilize existing silk industry infrastructure. The Company’s systems were designed that way in order to provide what the Company believes to be a significant and nearly insurmountable competitive advantage. “Our work to obtain these approvals has been driven by our goal of producing recombinant spider silk on a large scale, which can only be achieved by harnessing the opportunities presented by existing large scale silk production infrastructure,” stated Thompson.
Kraig considers its new wholly owned subsidiary, Prodigy Textiles Co., Ltd., to be its spider silk production arm. Vietnam has been the focus of the Company’s efforts to launch commercial scale production of recombinant spider silk, due to the country’s existing silk production infrastructure. Kraig estimates that it can produce its recombinant spider silk at prices similar to mundane silk, giving the Company a tremendous competitive advantage.
"Oh! What A Tangled Web We Weave(Sling) When First We Practice To Deceive"
Go KBLB
Yes Red, I am glad I have taken your advice year after year and gotten them while they were cheap on the many dips (they still are cheap relatively speaking) when there was “blood in the streets” regarding investor sentiment. Congratulations to our CEO Kim Thompson! I knew his vision and determination would bring us to this point eventually. Great job Ole Boy! I am sure that Kim and the entire growing KBLB team will continue their diligent excellence going forward. Time to assemble the commercialization machine!
Thanks for that sickzone.
I agree and have been steadily buying little by little over the last two weeks. In the latest PR it seems that Kim was setting the table for new investors who may be attracted from what I hope will be the next more exciting PR. We shall see. Go KBLB. JMO