Traceless

Traceless granulate, film and cutlery / Source: Traceless

AfricaAsiaBeautyCompostableEuropeFlexibleFood & BeverageFood GradeLightweightLow-CarbonMoisture BarrierNorth AmericaOceaniaOxygen Barrier PackagingRigidSealableSouth AmericaTracelessWater Repellent

WHAT WE SAY:

Plants make the best compostable polymers — they’ve had millions of years to perfect the process - and this is how Traceless feels when making its single-use plastic alternative of the same name.

A chemical and toxic-free material made of natural polymers sourced from agricultural waste, Traceless can be shaped into many forms and is designed to be a like-for-like swap for plastic packaging. It composts naturally too, leaving no trace of the material behind, tapping into nature's true circularity. We like the sound of that. As with anything new and innovative there are currently limitations on Traceless’ shelf-life and use cases, but we are excited by the possibilities this plant-made material has to grow.

Traceless

WHAT IS TRACELESS?

Traceless is a fossil fuel-free alternative to single-use plastics made from polymers extracted from agricultural foodstock waste.
The company doesn’t specify the exact type of agricultural waste it uses for its polymer feedstock, because it feels too limiting, but many types of plants can be used. Some examples include brewery residue and starch production leftovers
Traceless sources its feedstock from side streams from agricultural plant processing that are locally available in high amounts and in many regions. In an interview with the Traceless team, the company was strong on its point of using leftover foodstock, because it doesn’t compete with crops or forests for land or water use.
The base Traceless material comes in granulate form (made in Traceless designed and built facilities). This biomaterial can be converted by the larger plastic, converting and packaging industry on standard machinery into different applications, for example through injection moulding and extrusions. It’s designed as a drop-in solution for the plastic packaging industry.
Traceless can be made into flexibles, rigids, adhesives and even used as a paper coating for single-use food containers. The company is currently working with customers on shipment bags and on-plane packaging. The material is more suited for dry food goods, non-food packaging and disposables like single-use cutlery, rather than products that involve liquids.
According to the brand, Traceless is cost competitive with conventional plastics on industrial scale.
The brand states that its plastic alternative is home compostable within two to nine weeks, depending on conditions and the thickness of the material. Just like any plant left out in soil, it will degrade naturally and toxin-free. The “fully bio-circular” material also falls outside the realm of the EU’s Single Use Plastic Directive.
The brand doesn't call its material a bioplastic because it’s not chemically modified or polymerised, and the production and product use no toxic chemicals.
Because Traceless is made from only natural biopolymers, and uses agricultural byproducts, the company says there is huge room for scalability.
The company launched its first in-market pilot product in December 2022, plastic-free sock hooks for retail, in partnership with C&A. The joint development project sees a limited run of hooks used in the brand's Hamburg Altona store.

KEY PROPERTIES:

Compostable
Flexible
Food Grade
Lightweight
Low-Carbon
Moisture Barrier
Oxygen Barrier
Rigid
Sealable
Water Repellent

INDUSTRY:

Beauty
Food & Beverage
Packaging

AVAILABILITY:

Limited Orders

DIVE DEEPER:

According to Plastic Oceans, we are producing 380 million tonnes of plastic every year, with up to 50% of that single-use - items we use for mere seconds before disposing of. Given that a maximum 9% of plastic is ever recycled, this single-use lifestyle is adding to landfills, and polluting our oceans and soils with microplastics at an astonishing rate. Not to mention the toxins leached from this material throughout its life.
To truly tackle this issue, we need to firstly reduce our reliance on single-use items, and secondly find non-polluting materials to replace plastic with when necessary. Traceless is one such material, and its use of naturally occurring waste feedstocks stands it apart from other solutions that require additional land and resources to grow. Its first in-house LCA found that the material emits up to 95% fewer emissions than virgin plastics, with 1.65kg of CO2e saved for every kilogram of Traceless produced.
These savings partly come from re-directing agricultural waste to a second life. In 2016, 3.5% of global GHG emissions came from burning crop residues, something global farmers do to clear their land for the next crop rotation. This burning not only emits black carbon into the atmosphere, but has hugely detrimental health impacts on local and national residents, as can be seen every year in India. It also deteriorates the health of the soil, having a long-term, knock-on impact on food supplies.
Traceless uses this waste in new ways, and as a result each kilogram produced reduces water use by 100 litres, saves 46,78 megajoules of fossil energy and reduces agricultural land demand by 1.06 m²a.
The company is intent on spreading the message that "there’s no one company or material that’s a solution for everything. By supporting each other, [rather than competing] we can actually create a plastic waste free world.” Traceless is already working with a number of brands to turn the tide on plastic, including German e-commerce company OTTO and aviation company Lufthansa.

In 2021, Traceless - founded by Anne Lamp and Joanna Vaare in 2020 - raised a seed funding round and received a EUR 2.42 million (USD 2.55 million) grant from the European Innovation Council, part of the Horizon Europe EIC Accelerator.
The brand has been awarded the Flustix certificate, which certifies it’s plastic-free, and has already won many awards in its short history, including first place in Germany’s Top 50 start-up rankings for 2021.

Spent grain from brewing - a Traceless feedstock / Source: Shutterstock

Traceless is designed as a drop-in solution for the plastic packaging industry / Source: Traceless

KEY FACTS:

95%

Traceless emits up to 95% fewer emissions than virgin plastic

1.65kg

Traceless saves 1.65kg of CO2e for each kilogram produced

€2.42mn

Traceless received a €2.42 million grant from the European Innovation Council in 2021

Key Questions to Ask:

What shelf-life do you need?

Right now, Traceless guarantees its biomaterial packaging has a shelf-life of one year for certain applications. This may change as the company matures, but if you're looking for packaging that stands the test of time we advise either a reusable packaging option using the likes of Aluminium or Steel, or a Moulded Fibre solution such as the Cullen Fibre Bottle.

Do you need to package liquids?

Traceless can't currently hold liquids, and isn't suitable as a replacement for packs such as single-use water bottles because contact with liquids could start the decomposition process early. Prioritise dry items, or those with low water content, when using the material.

Could you do away with packaging all together?

While packaging is essential for some products, others could do away with it entirely if the formula of the product is readdressed. Those specialising in cosmetics should consider if their product could be made into a solid form instead, allowing for no packaging at all, as per the Lush Naked range.