[NE Coffee Chat] Sustainer Lab "Selling One Product Has the Effect of Planting One Tree"

Interview with Seoseonmi, CEO of Sustainable Lab
Development of Plastic Alternative Material 'Retree'
Uses Up to 70% Agricultural and Food By-products

Our consumption is always accompanied by carbon emissions. Even when buying a meal, a chain of greenhouse gas emissions follows, from fuel use to food waste. However, there is someone who says that some products reduce carbon the more you buy them. That person is Seoseonmi, CEO of Sustainable Lab. His goal is to achieve the effect of planting a tree every time a product is sold.

On the 24th, CEO Seo said, "We are making 'plastic-free' products as a solution to climate change," adding, "The impact of materials is significant, so we have been developing materials in earnest." The plastic alternative material that Sustainable Lab has been focusing on developing and showcasing since last year, after accumulating technology since its founding in 2021, is called 'Retree.' The name was given to mean that it becomes a tree again, using agricultural and food by-products as materials.

Seo Sun-mi, CEO of Sustainable Lab, is explaining 'Retree,' an eco-friendly material that replaces plastic. Provided by Sustainable Lab

Retree is a material that uses up to 70% agricultural and food by-products such as husks from cacao, coffee, apples, and rice. Minerals and other elements are added to implement functions similar to plastic. Even biodegradable eco-friendly materials like biomass plastics contain about 20% agricultural and food by-products. Using more than that makes it difficult to achieve the physical properties needed to replace plastic. CEO Seo said he developed the technology through numerous experiments by visiting factories producing biomass plastics, inspired by Germany's woodification technology. He stated, "Because the by-products are not just an addition but the main component of the material, microplastics reach 0%. We are accumulating technology for material uniformity and standardization using various by-products." Sustainable Lab explains that Retree reduces carbon emissions by up to 86% compared to petroleum-based plastics, and its carbon capture amount is 19.36 kg per 1 kg.

Sustainable Lab produces daily consumer goods such as cups, tableware, bathroom products, and interior materials using Retree. Currently, they mainly plan and sell eco-friendly goods through business-to-business (B2B) transactions. CEO Seo said, "There are many attempts to make eco-friendly materials using by-products, but few reach product commercialization," adding, "There are various processes from material to product, and Sustainable Lab has expertise in this area." He explained that they understand what products companies want. B2B customer satisfaction is also high. Through this, Retree does not end as a material but delivers a message as a product ready for immediate use. CEO Seo said, "The goal of product development is something close to nature but durable."

However, it cannot be asserted that Retree can replace plastic. Plastic is one of the most widely used and cheapest materials worldwide. It is difficult for the new material Retree to have the price competitiveness to replace plastic. CEO Seo expects that once mass production begins, the cost can match that of existing biodegradable plastics. He said, "Ultimately, the goal is to make a material as cheap as plastic."

The vision of Sustainable Lab, "Less Plastic, More Trees," reflects CEO Seo's 15 years of experience in sustainable tourism and official development assistance (ODA) in Asia. When a project to plant trees with local residents in tropical rainforests was halted due to COVID-19, he created an eco-friendly travel kit to maintain exchanges and launched it on a funding platform. This product became the foundation of the current business. CEO Seo's goal for this year is to sell many products. To achieve the vision of reducing plastic, sales must increase first. He said, "We will prove how much an eco-friendly company can grow and how well we can appeal our products to the market."