Material that grows – turning fruit into fashion

Imagine a material that doesn’t just look beautiful, but is grown through biology, powered by sunlight and created from resources we usually discard – that’s exactly what Polybion™ is making possible.

Based in Mexico, Polybion™ is leading the development of Celium™ – a premium cultivated cellulose that mirrors the look and feel of leather, but is produced by bacteria nourished with fruit waste, primarily mango.

In other words, they’re turning discarded fruit into something entirely new: a high-performance material that proves “waste” can be reimagined as luxury.

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How It Works

The method is surprisingly elegant. It begins with a slurry of mango fruit waste fed to specially developed bacteria, which convert the sugars into cellulose, forming a gel-like, skin-like layer called a pellicle. Over 20–30 days, the bacteria self-organize and build a cellulose membrane as part of their natural metabolism. Once the biofabric reaches the desired thickness, it’s carefully scooped up, washed to remove the bacteria and dried in a solar-powered facility.

From there, Celium™ can be dyed, embossed or tailored just like leather. The difference is that it’s vegan, organic and USDA Certified BioPreferred®, a designation from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that verifies a product is made with renewable biological ingredients rather than petroleum-based alternatives.

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Why It Matters

Most materials today follow a straight line: we take something from nature, use it up and throw it away. Polybion™ takes a different path, looping waste back into the system by turning fruit scraps into new resources and tackling three big problems in one move:

• Animal agriculture – by replacing leather.
• Food waste – by giving discarded fruit a second life.‍
• Plastic pollution – by offering a bio-based, high-performance alternative.

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Scaling With Responsibility

The potential is enormous. Using locally available fruit waste alone, Polybion™ could produce 168 million square feet (≈15.6 million m²) of this cultivated cellulose annually.

Every step of production meets strict environmental standards, including EPA regulations (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), REACH rules (European Union chemical regulations) and ZDHC guidelines (Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals program). No hazardous chemicals are released and virtually no biomass is left over between cycles.

The company has also developed and patented Terra – a special bacterial strain that accelerates growth and enhances the strength of the material.

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Bring Celium™ to Life

Celium™ isn’t just an idea in the lab – it has been successfully applied in bags, sneakers, loafers, blazers, skirts, crop tops and other fashion accessories. But the applications don’t stop there. Beyond fashion, Celium™ has huge potential for interior surfaces, small furniture accents, packaging and conceptual design pieces.

Some of the world’s most forward-thinking brands are already exploring what Celium™ can do. Polybion™ has teamed up with GANNI, Secrid and Natural Urbano, a studio designing contemporary lighting, developing LAPSO – a lamp that highlights the material’s versatility potential (and in our opinion, looks stunning!).

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For Designers and Brands

Developed in close collaboration with material engineers and designers, this premium cultivated cellulose is ready for mainstream applications. Here’s what you need to know if you want to work with it:

Minimum order quantity (MOQ)‍

2 sheets, each around 17 sq. ft. (≈1.6 m²). For larger developments, orders above 2,000 sq. ft. (≈185 m²) per quarter qualify for reduced rates.

Lead time

‍About 1 month for sheet orders; ~15 days for swatch samplers.

Colours & finishes‍

Can be dyed and embossed using existing infrastructure. Catalogue colours are available with swatch samples.

Certifications‍

USDA BioPreferred (78% biobased, up to 90% with TENCEL™ backing).

Each sheet of Celium™ measures about 1.7 m x 1.0 m (≈17 sq. ft. usable area). Because it’s grown by bacteria rather than manufactured in a mold, edges may vary slightly – a subtle reminder of its biological origins.

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Materials Grown for the Future

At its core, Polybion™ is showing that materials don’t have to be mined or harvested in destructive ways – they can be grown. It’s a shift that hints at what tomorrow could look like: supply chains inspired by nature, where every output becomes an input, nothing is wasted and everything contributes to the whole.