traceless raises €36.6 million to industrialise a home-compostable alternative to plastic

traceless, a Hamburg based bioeconomy start up, has closed a €36.6 million Series A financing round to scale production of its biomaterial traceless® and to build the company’s first demonstration plant. The round was led by UB Forest Industry Green Growth Fund and SWEN CP’s Blue Ocean fund. A local banking syndicate and the company’s existing investors also participated. The company says the plant will enable it to replace several thousand tonnes of conventional plastic annually and avoid significant CO2 emissions and resource use.

Who invested and how the round was structured

UB FIGG is a private equity fund focused on sustainable, resource efficient forest and bio based industries. SWEN CP’s Blue Ocean fund targets innovations addressing ocean related threats including pollution. Local lenders GLS Bank and Hamburger Sparkasse joined the round. Founders and company executives said the investor mix was chosen for industry knowledge and willingness to finance capital intensive hardware scale up.

What traceless® is and how the company positions it

traceless describes its core product as a natural biomaterial made from agricultural residues. The material is sold as a granulate that the company says can be used with standard plastics industry processing equipment such as injection moulding machines and extrusion lines. traceless claims the material is 100 percent bio based, certified home compostable, plastic free, free of PFAS and harmful chemicals, and has a minimal ecological footprint compared to conventional plastics.

Certifications and lifecycle claims

traceless highlights several certifications and performance figures. The material is said to be certified home compostable under NF T 51 800 and certified as 100 percent plastic free by Flustix. The company reports large reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and fossil energy use during production and disposal compared to plastics. The exact numbers vary across company statements. The EIC community release cites up to 91 percent CO2 savings and 89 percent fossil energy savings. Company communications on its website mention up to 95 percent savings in production and disposal and up to 76 percent lower emissions across the whole lifecycle.

Scaling plan and the Hamburg demonstration plant

The Series A funding is intended to expand production capabilities and to build traceless’s first industrial scale demonstration plant in Hamburg. The company says the plant will enable replacement of several thousand tonnes of conventional plastic per year and will deliver savings in CO2 emissions, fossil resources, water and agricultural land. Executives described financing as a challenge for capital intensive hardware focused start ups and welcomed investors and banks willing to back a hardware scale up.

Company background and public funding

traceless materials GmbH was founded in Hamburg in 2020 by Dr. Anne Lamp and Johanna Baare. The company says its mission is to support a regenerative, climate friendly economy and to reduce plastic pollution. traceless received an EIC Phase 2 grant of €2,425,149 in June 2021 as part of its earlier scale up activities.

Market applications and claims of interoperability

traceless positions its material as a replacement for plastics in hard to recycle or single use applications including single use items, packaging, coatings and adhesives. The supplier claims the material behaves like plastics in processing and performance while offering end of life that mirrors natural decomposition. The company highlights that in mixed recycling streams the material will not harm recyclability of other streams.

What to watch and where scrutiny is needed

The announcement is significant as a venture capital backed scaling step for a European biomaterials start up. Still there are practical challenges and open questions to track as the company scales. These include securing consistent feedstock supply of agricultural residues at scale, the energy and water intensity of industrial processing, the robustness of performance across a range of applications, the regional availability of home composting or appropriate waste streams, regulatory acceptance for specific use cases and transparent, independent lifecycle verification of environmental claims.

Context within the EU innovation ecosystem

Europe has been prioritising bioeconomy innovation and circular economy transition through funding programmes and regulatory frameworks. The European Innovation Council and other EU instruments have supported many deep tech and hardware projects. Investment into scale up of bio based materials fits wider EU priorities on reducing reliance on fossil feedstocks and addressing plastic pollution. However this policy support coexists with regulatory scrutiny of biodegradability claims and increasing calls for standardised, independent environmental assessment to avoid greenwashing.

Conclusion

The €36.6 million raise is an important vote of confidence from impact oriented investors and local banks in traceless’s approach to scaling a biomaterial made from agricultural residues. The company’s technical claims and certifications address key pain points in the plastics value chain but they will need to be backed by transparent lifecycle analysis and demonstrated performance at industrial volumes. The forthcoming demonstration plant in Hamburg will be the critical test for the company’s environmental assertions, supply chain resilience and commercial viability.

Key facts at a glance