Researchers at Imperial College London have genetically engineered bacteria to grow animal- and plastic-free leather that also dyes itself. This breakthrough achievement is a major step forward in the quest for sustainable fashion. The self-dyeing vegan, plastic-free leather is made from bacterial cellulose, a strong, flexible, and malleable material that is already used in food, cosmetics, and textiles. The bacteria are engineered to produce the dark black pigment, eumelanin, which dyes the material from the inside out. The researchers have created shoe and wallet prototypes and believe that the process can be adapted to produce materials with various vibrant colors and patterns, and to make more sustainable alternatives to other textiles like cotton and cashmere. The project demonstrates the potential for bacteria to grow materials with unique properties, such as self-dyeing capabilities, and could revolutionize the fashion industry. The researchers are now working with the fashion industry to make the production of clothes more sustainable and hope to use this technology to solve other environmental problems, such as the use of toxic chromium in leather production.
Pioneering new material: lab-grown, bacteria-based ‘leather’ that changes color naturally, eliminating need for dyeing.
