Earthodic has created a plastic-free coating for packaging materials that is compostable and recyclable, and the company just raised $1.85 million in pre-seed funding to develop it. The round was co-led by Tenacious Ventures and Investible, with participation from Twynam Group and Closed Loop Partners.
The company’s flagship product, PaperbarcTM, is a bio-based coating that provides paper and packaging with enhanced water resistance and strength. Unlike traditional wax or plastic coatings, PaperbarcTM is fully recyclable or compostable at end-of-life.
“We are very excited to be supporting the team at Earthodic,” said Sarah Nolet, Managing Partner at Tenacious Ventures.
“Packaging in the agricultural and food value chain is a massive, visible sustainability challenge and we look forward to seeing the impact their solution will make.”
Earthodic was founded in 2021 by four co-founders with a combined 20+ years of experience in materials science, sustainability, and business development. The company is headquartered in Melbourne and has a team of 10 employees.
“I am grateful for the incredible support of our investors,” said Anthony Musumeci, co-founder of Earthodic. “We are excited about the early success we’ve achieved, and cannot wait to explore future opportunities to scale up our technology and continue creating a positive impact.”
The funding from this round will be used to accelerate the growth of Earthodic, with a particular focus on scaling up the production of PaperbarcTM, increasing sales and marketing efforts, expanding the company’s intellectual property portfolio as well as expanding its commercial engagements with organizations seeking more sustainable solutions for wax and plastic-coated paper packaging.
“The Earthodic team brings a strong blend of research and commercial acumen, manufacturing and sustainable materials expertise perfectly aligned with the problems they are addressing,” said Ben Lindsay, Investment Manager at Investible.
“We were impressed with the incredible persistence they’ve shown to date building this technology and look forward to supporting their next phase.”
Earthodic is well-positioned to capitalise on the growing demand for sustainable packaging solutions. The company’s innovative technology has the potential to make a significant impact on the sustainability of the agricultural and food value chain.