Chitin Foam from Shrimp Shells

The ask

Extract chitin from shrimp processing waste and convert it into biodegradable packaging foam — a drop-in replacement for expanded polystyrene (EPS) — targeting garment exporters, electronics distributors, and pharmaceutical cold-chain users who face EU/UK single-use plastics bans on their export packaging.

Why now

Cruz Foam (US) proved chitin-based foam is commercially viable at scale in 2023. The EU Single-Use Plastics Directive and the UK equivalent are forcing Bangladesh's garment exporters to re-examine all packaging materials — a compliance deadline, not just a preference. EPS prices have risen 35% since 2021. The technology path is now derisked; the remaining challenge is local feedstock processing, which Bangladesh can do cheaply.

Why Bangladesh

Bangladesh is the world's fifth-largest shrimp exporter, processing roughly 150,000 tonnes/year; shrimp shell waste runs at ~40% of input weight and is currently landfilled or dumped at cost. That waste stream contains enough chitin to supply a meaningful domestic foam industry. Khulna and Chittagong both host large shrimp processing clusters where a chitin extraction plant co-located with processors would have near-zero feedstock transport cost.

As a business

The primary customer is garment exporters (a ৳4+ trillion industry) who need compliant packaging materials to maintain EU market access; secondary customers are pharma companies shipping cold-chain products. Revenue is per-kg of foam sold with a green premium over EPS; a carbon credit registration on the diverted waste stream adds a secondary income. The feedstock is currently a disposal liability for shrimp processors, meaning it may be available free or at negative cost.

Economics

Move the sliders to model your own chitin foam plant. Defaults are order-of-magnitude estimates — pressure-testing them is part of what a founder pitches us.

What ZEPH would back

A founder with chemistry or materials science depth who has already secured a feedstock supply agreement with at least one shrimp processor and can demonstrate a working foam sample — not just the Cruz Foam slide deck. Ideally co-located with a Khulna or Chittagong processor to minimise waste transport.

Impact

Expanded polystyrene (EPS) packaging generates approximately 3.5 kg CO₂e per kg during production and is essentially non-biodegradable; chitin foam biodegrades in under 120 days and its feedstock — shrimp shell waste currently landfilled — has a near-zero carbon cost. Bangladesh's 150,000-tonne annual shrimp processing output generates roughly 60,000 tonnes of shell waste; converting even 10 % to chitin foam would displace thousands of tonnes of EPS and eliminate a significant coastal pollution liability. The business also keeps plastic-packaging import expenditure inside the country, generating direct FX savings for Bangladesh's garment and pharma exporters.