Backing for 'polyester from food waste' start-up

TORONTO - Sustainable fashion and biotechnology startup Alt Tex - which seeks to turn food waste into a plastic-free alternative to polyester - has raised CAN$1.5 million (US$1.24m) in a pre-seed funding round.

The company aims to use a novel chemical processing to ferment a polyester-like biofibre from post-industrial food waste to create woven and non-woven textiles for apparel.

The funding round was co-led by Garage Capital and Amplify Capital, with participation from Globalive Capital, Panache Ventures, Ramen Ventures, Spacecadet Ventures, and Presstar.