The increase in plastic wastes found in the marine environment is a global phenomenon that manifests itself on a local scale. Whether they are microbeads washed into the sea from their use in cosmetics, fishing nets snagged on the seabed, microfibres released from clothes when washed or even a tragic outcome of a tsunami, the issue of plastics in our shared oceans is rising on environmental, economic and political agendas.
Fishy Filaments™ doesn’t pretend to address all these issues. Our aim is to provide a win-win solution to fishing communities by taking end-of-life fishing gear and some of the plastics caught during normal fishing activities, then transforming them into commercially viable products that have the potential for a multitude of uses.
Our first product will be a recycled nylon filament for use in 3D printing. Unlike established nylon recycling routes our solution uses simple mechanical and thermal processes that can be achieved at a local scale and with no harsh chemicals added. Our next project is to complete on-going R&D on recycling larger trawl nets made of polyethylene and polypropylene.
We are currently working with the support of the Newlyn Pier & Harbour Commissioners, Fishing for Litter (SW) and Cornwall Development Company’s BIG2 fund to establish our first production unit at Newlyn in Cornwall, UK.
A successful fund raising on Crowdcube has brought in 407 new investors from 19 different countries whose funds will take Fishy Filaments into production.
Winner of Best Innovator Cornwall Susainability Awards 2017
Shortlisted in the category Best Recycled Product of the Year
