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ReSource Chemical Corp., a bioplastics startup spun out of Stanford, has raised $15 million to build its first pilot plant in the Bay Area. 

Why it matters: Bio-based plastic alternatives have had a hard time competing on cost and performance with dirt cheap, fossil-fuel-based plastics.

Zoom in: Khosla Ventures and Fathom Fund co-led the round. 

Chevron Technology Ventures, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company and angel investors Adam Winkel and Matt Berger also participated. 

ReSource previously raised $8.9 million in non-dilutive funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation, bringing its total raised to around $25 million. 

The company will use the funding to produce more of its material at a pilot plant so that customers and partners can evaluate its performance.

Catch up quick: Stanford Ph.D student Aanindeeta Banerjee and Stanford professor Matthew Kanan invented the technology and co-founded the company in 2021.

ReSource previously raised a pre-seed round of $1.9 million from investors including Khosla Ventures.

How it works: ReSource has developed a simple chemical process that converts biomass waste and carbon dioxide into a molecule called FDCA (or 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid). 

FDCA is the key building block of a bioplastic material referred to as PEF (or polyethylene furanoate). 

ReSource produces the FDCA material and sends that to partners and customers (such as consumer brands) that turn it into PEF and shape it into products like bottles or films. 

Zoom out: PEF has been a promising plastics alternative for years, but materials companies haven't been able to make FDCA cheaply enough.

ReSource says its process will be low-cost enough to enable PEF to become a viable plastics alternative. 

What's next: ReSource plans to build a commercial plant down the road and develop other specialty materials that it will produce alongside FDCA.

Exclusive: ReSource raises $15M for better bioplastics

The Bay area startup's material could unlock the bioplastic PEF.

Recycling symbol made of plastic utensils

ReSource Chemical Corp., a bioplastics startup spun out of Stanford, has raised $15 million to build its first pilot plant in the Bay Area. Why it matters: Bio-based plastic alternatives have had a hard time competing on cost and performance with dirt cheap, fossil-fuel-based plastics.

Exclusive: ReSource raises $15M for better bioplastics

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