A safer denim dye? Here are 5 products from federal lab aiding Stanislaus bioindustry
The East Bay lab advising Stanislaus County on bioindustry already has helped with notable products elsewhere.
Startups have sought better baby formula, denim dye and other advances from the lab, which The Modesto Bee toured on Feb. 2. A much-larger operation is part of the Stanislaus 2030 plan to make use of crop and other waste.
The lab is in Emeryville and overseen by the nearby Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Its formal name is the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit.
Here are five collaborations on the lab’s website:
- Sugarlogix, based in Alameda, is using yeast to make baby formula that’s closer to breast milk in nutritional value.
- Huue, based in Berkeley, produced a denim dye with microbes. It could replace the widely used indigo, which requires toxic chemicals.
- A Davis-based company named Oobli uses microbes to produce proteins that mimic the taste of sugar, without the ill effects. It previously was called Joywell Foods.
- Recology, a trash collector based in San Francisco, is testing bacteria that might convert organic waste to energy.
- Checkerspot, a snow ski maker in Alameda, used algae to create a polymer that helps make the products lightweight and flexible.
Lab Director Deepti Tanjore is advising the Stanislaus 2030 team. It aims to create about 40,000 jobs through bioindustry and more general support for small business, job training and child care.
John Holland
The Modesto Bee