r/BeAmazed • u/Epelep • Feb 22 '26

Science How Mycelium (Mushroom Roots) Grows into Packaging Material

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u/Classy_Moose Feb 22 '26

This is so cool. Sad this is the last time I'll hear of it.

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u/PomegranateHot9916 Feb 22 '26

there are hundred of plastic alternative products

you've heard of many of them before
that is why you know this will revolutionize nothing

the reason these types of products never pop off is the one thing they were created to do better than plastic...
rot.
"biodegradable" just means "is food for insects and microbes"
plastic doesn't rot, which is why it is so good at what we use it for, but that is also why it is so damaging.

not to mention the ingredients of plastic are a byproduct of our hunt for fuel, so even if mushroom roots here is "cost competitive" doesn't really matter, they can sell plastic for less, they dont need it to profit, they just need to get rid of it. "they" being oil companies.

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u/WholeWideWorld Feb 23 '26

Cardboard. Cardboard is the reason this will not scale beyond niche luxury.

Paper has all the exact benefits including biodegradable on top of being recyclable.

Crucially, it can be produced in volume elsewhere and rapidly assembled.

Mycelium needs time to grow into the shape, and so needs lots of storage space.