Bio-based alternatives to microplastics

Eastman Chemical Company and Cellugy are two named companies working on alternatives. Eastman develops biodegradable cellulose-ester microbeads for cosmetic formulations, while Cellugy’s EcoFLEXY platform uses biofabricated cellulose. Their work reflects two paths to replacement: chemically modifying cellulose for specific bead functions and producing cellulose through biological processes.

Cellugy is the clearest named startup in the available company details, and the dataset identifies 3 startups in total. Its EcoFLEXY platform uses biofabricated cellulose as a cosmetics microplastic alternative, with work focused on scaling and commercialization. The available facts do not provide enough comparable information to rank the other startups.

Eastman Chemical Company and Cellugy are named suppliers developing cellulose-based alternatives. Eastman’s biodegradable cellulose-ester microbeads are intended for cosmetic formulations, while Cellugy is commercializing its biofabricated-cellulose EcoFLEXY ingredient. The available company details describe development and commercialization activity, but do not establish production volumes or a complete supplier ranking.

Recorded grant funding totals $12,054,342 across 9 grants since 2020. This is the grant total in the available facts; it should not be treated as a complete measure of investment in the field. The separate funding-round data includes investments in organizations whose listed activities are not specific to microplastic alternatives.

Eastman Chemical Company and Dickinson lead the listed patent holders with 7 patents each. Becton, Dickinson and Company follows with 6, while Fujimi Incorporated, Zhuhai CosMX Battery Co. and Xiamen Hithium Energy Storage Technology Co. each have 3. The list includes patent holders whose activity may not be limited to bio-based microplastic alternatives.

Patent activity declined 32.7% in the defined last-12-month comparison with the previous 12 months; the window contains 87 patents. This contraction sits alongside continued development of materials such as cellulose particles and polysaccharide hydrogels. Patent counts indicate disclosed activity, but do not by themselves show commercial readiness or product adoption.

Recent developments include BIOWEG’s bacterial-cellulose plant announcement in September 2026 and a cellulose-bead production study published in July 2026. Researchers at Dongguk University and the National Institute of Forest Science used a sunflower-oil-assisted emulsion–gelation process to make mesoporous cellulose II microbeads. These developments point to both production scale-up and process innovation.

The 5 listed approaches are cellulose particles, starch-based materials, polysaccharide hydrogels, bio-based polyesters and protein-based particles. They differ in their material structure and performance trade-offs: hydrogels can swell, starch can be moisture-sensitive, and polyesters may require specific conditions to biodegrade. Cellulose and protein particles offer other routes, each with formulation and stability constraints.

The United States leads the listed country activity with 815 documents, followed by China with 282 and the United Kingdom with 271. India has 221, while Germany has 174. These figures reflect document activity in the available facts, not a direct comparison of commercial production or market adoption.

The listed applications include personal care and cosmetics, household and industrial cleaning, food and beverage, agriculture, and textiles and coatings. Personal care and cosmetics has 28 documents, while household and industrial cleaning has 13. Other listed areas have fewer documents, including food and beverage with 2 and agriculture with 3.