By Jeff Tribe

An innovative start-up company comprised of university doctoral students or full PhDs is applying the age-old adage of “waste not, want not” to the very modern goal of a commercially-viable solution for converting structural dairy surplus into biodegradable plastic.
    “We’re trying to create a sustainable solution for the dairy industry,” MetaCycler BioInnovations (MCBI) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Nicole LeBlanc summed up succinctly. 
    The endeavour lies at the intersection of the challenge of what to do with dairy waste, combined with a broadly-based search for an environmentally-friendlier replacement for conventional plastic.
    Polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHAs, are one proposed solution. Degradable material created from other organisms, PHAs are flexible and can therefore be used in combination with other bioplastics says LeBlanc. 
    “So it can change the material for broader applications,” said LeBlanc.
    “From film on a pint of strawberries to the cap on a milk carton,” added Chief Operating Officer Jonathan Parkes.
    Bio-plastic is valuable, says MCBI Chief Science Officer Aranksha Thakor.
    “And it is certainly very expensive to make.”
    A significant percentage of this cost results from the fact that its production often sources food items as base ingredients. MCBI’s multi-tiered approach is sourcing lactose, a constituent of milk included in structural surplus from the dairy industry. For instance, whey, as the food source. “We see it as a big opportunity to utilize this waste,” said Parkes.
    “You are solving two problems,” added Director of Fermentation Shirley Wong, who achieved her doctorate in pharmaceutical research in 2020. Not only could this process lower the cost of producing PHAs, it also sustainably repurposes what previously was waste material. “We’re saying ‘We can take it and use it.’”
    A third advantage exists within this model, responding to growing consumer and general public concerns around sustainability and environmental responsibility. For lack of a better term, creating biodegradable dairy packaging material from structural surplus offers significant “branding” potential. “We’ve circularized our own waste,” LeBlanc explained.
    The concept propagated from biological doctoral research between Thakor and LeBlanc. While research is valuable for its own sake, establishing proof of concept through modifying the genome of existing bacteria to utilize lactose in the production of PHAs also identified a potential opportunity to better the environment.
    “We are genetically engineering bacteria to do this and make it as efficient as possible,” summed up Thakor.
    Their success generated interest leading to the realization the process could combine higher purpose with commercial application.
    “We could bring it to the world as a whole rather than having it in a research lab,” said LeBlanc.
    In very basic terms, genetically engineered bacteria are combined with the lactose contained in dairy structural surplus inside a bioreactor. Following a 24-hour turnaround, microbes are refined through a process which extracts PHAs which at this stage are in powdered form. Following heating to evaporate any water, the powder is melted and extruded into small pellets. 
    Of note, the resulting product possesses traditional plastic-like properties while being biodegradable in both terrestrial and marine environments, says Parkes.
    “There is no microplastics associated with the work we are doing,” he added.
    Both bacteria and structural surplus can be reused to extend production.
    “All of our projects are in some way improving this process,” said Thakor.
    “We know that it is possible,” Parkes added. “We know that we can, now it’s a matter of executing the ‘how.’”
    Part of that equation is refining and optimizing procedures while scaling production.
    “Obviously, you want things to happen overnight, but you have to trust the process,” said Parkes. “You can’t go from one kilogram to a tonne. You’ve got to take the steps to go from one kilogram to two to 10 to 50 and 100.”
    MCBI’s foundation story mirrors that measured progress, built on comple-mentary, inter-disciplinary skill sets. MetaCycler BioInnovations was incorporated in December, 2022 in conjunction with filing a patent for its process. It was founded by LeBlanc, Thakor, Eugenia Dadzie (Director of Communications), all working on biology doctorates at The University of Waterloo; Wong and University of Waterloo biology department Professor Trevor Charles, who have achieved their PhDs; and Parkes, who is completing a business-related PhD in management at The University of Guelph.
    The University of Waterloo’s Waterloo Commercialization Office (WatCo), an entity dedicated to supporting the creator-owned transition of laboratory research innovations into the marketplace, has been instrumental. WatCo provides services and expertise, in effect, levelling the playing field for those with an innovative research-based concept or procedure but lacking access to expertise or capital required to develop it commercially.
    WatCo assisted MCBI with incorporation, establishing its capitalization table (quantifying each investor’s equity capital stake in the business) and helped define roles and responsibilities.
    “That gave us a very strong foundation we can build off of,” said Parkes.
    Ongoing research is being conducted within University of Waterloo laboratory space, a “crucial opportunity” given even a “bare bones” research facility would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
    “It’s wonderful to have access to these resources,” said Parkes.
    Growing the business runs concurrent to ongoing research, a combination of seeking development and investor funding and establishing MCBI’s presence in a competitive environment.
    The company is fitting in through funding pitch competitions including SynBio Canada 2023 Accelerating Start Ups and The University of Waterloo’s Velocity start-up support program. The MCBI team also networked at the 2023 Sustainable Plastics Conference in Los Angeles, California and the 2023 Collision Conference ALPHA Start-Up Showcase in Toronto. 
    Beyond earlier success at pitch competitions, MCBI received its largest cash infusion to date – a $50,000 Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) investment – in December, 2023.
    Apart from practical applications the funding will support, Parkes views it as an important 365-day milestone.
    “A lot of people said, ‘That’s nice,’” he recalled upon MCBI’s foundation, contrasting the positive growth from ‘you’ve got a nice story,’ to “‘I can see it - and here’s a bit of cash to run with it.’”
    Parkes describes MCBI as a full-time operation based on collaborative part-time contributions from multi-tasking individuals. Completion of PhDs will allow for ramping up and an enhanced focus on development.
    The company is far from alone in trying to create commercially-viable biodegradable plastics. Many of us who’ve tried to suck a milkshake up through a paper straw can attest plastic has attractive qualities to go along with significant environmental downsides. A market exists for creating something that degrades efficiently on either land or sea rather than residing in virtual perpetuity in landfills, the planet’s oceans or in micro form in the bodies of living organisms.
    MCBI is one of many start-ups wading into a crowded and highly-competitive space. However, the company is doing so on the ground floor with the strength of what it believes is a viable and proven concept and the flexibility to both grow and diversify.
    “It’s an exciting time,” Parkes concluded. “In a sense, we’re not just making widgets. “This is something we can be proud of, and something that hopefully can make a difference.” ◊