#Recycling / Circular Economy

2025-10-09

Samsara Eco appoints first General Manager of Asia to lead expansion

Samsara Eco has announced the appointment of Dr Lars Kissau as its first General Manager of Asia. Based in Singapore, Kissau will lead the company's expansion across Asia as it scales operations and sprints towards the opening of the company's first commercial nylon 6,6 facility in 2028.

Dr Lars Kissau and Paul Riley, CEO and Founder of Samsara Eco. © 2025 Samsara Eco

Kissau joins from BASF, where he spent the last two decades leading business operations for the global chemicals company. Most recently, he led the company's net zero accelerator, which focused on implementing and accelerating low carbon and circular economy technologies.

"We're rapidly scaling to meet market demand for low carbon, circular materials,” said Paul Riley, CEO and Founder of Samsara Eco. “We've just opened our first plant in regional Australia and have our eyes firmly set on our first nylon 6,6 plant in Asia.”

“Lars brings unmatched expertise to help us scale rapidly, and places us at the centre of the plastics supply chain. We're transforming century-old economic models. Having the best team with deep expertise like Lars, will help us rapidly accelerate our path to commercialisation.”

Today, only 10% of plastics are recycled, and less than 1% of textiles are recycled into new textiles, perpetuating a linear economy. Samsara Eco aims to rewrite those numbers with its enzymatic recycling technology, EosEco, which uses AI-crafted enzymes to recycle the unrecyclable to keep more out of the landfill and in circulation.

Samsara Eco is preparing to open its first 20,000-tonne commercial nylon 6,6 plant in 2028, which is currently being designed by engineering partner, KBR. Kissau will lead on this build, which will be the first of a fleet of international facilities using the company's EosEco technology to turn waste into virgin-identical raw materials. The plan is to build out the regional team to half a dozen over the next 12 months to support operations in the region.

Commenting on why he joined Samsara Eco, Dr Lars Kissau said: "Samsara Eco's technology is not a niche solution but one that can scale and create real-world change. Nylon and mixed plastics have historically been a challenge to recycle, which is why Samsara Eco's potential is so promising. The technology has the power to change the whole value chain of plastics, and with it, change industries.”

"I'm looking forward to building alongside this incredible team, who are all as passionate as I am to accelerate our technology to create a circular economy for plastics", added Kissau.

The appointment further strengthens Samsara Eco's network in the region, with lead investor Temasek also based in Singapore, as well as a thriving biotech ecosystem. While Singapore will serve as the hub for its regional expansion, the company's innovation engine will remain anchored in Samsara Eco's recently opened facility in Jerrabomberra, Australia.

The news follows a number of recent milestones for the company, including the opening of its first plant in regional Australia, and a 10-year offtake plan with lululemon to supply approximately 20% of the company's overall fibre portfolio

Samsara Eco and European Outdoor Group launch the Nylon Materials Collective

Australian biotech, Samsara Eco and the European Outdoor Group (EOG) today launched the Nylon Materials Collective, a collaboration designed to make high-performance, virgin-identical recycled nylon accessible to more outdoor brands and accelerate the industry’s shift toward a truly circular textiles future.

Samsara Eco opens first plant to scale circular plastics

Australian biotech innovator, Samsara Eco, has today opened its first plant, representing a significant milestone in the fight against plastic waste. The new plant will exponentially increase the company’s ability to produce virgin-identical, low-carbon circular materials like recycled nylon 6,6 and polyester with broad applications across apparel, packaging and automotives, at scale.

Industry heavyweights join Samsara Eco to accelerate its enzymatic recycling technology

Australian biotech innovator, Samsara Eco, has expanded its global leadership team with the appointment of material science and engineering veterans, Brock Thomas as Chief Innovation Officer and Isaac Iverson as Executive Director of Product. Thomas and Iverson bring decades of experience working within the polymer space in the US and will lead the scaling of the company’s enzymatic recycling technology and first-of-a-kind facilities.

Reju secures €135 Million in Dutch NIKI Funding for industrial-scale textile-to-textile regeneration hub at Chemelot Industrial Park, the Netherlands

Reju™, the progressive textile-to-textile regeneration company, has been awarded €135 million in funding under the Netherlands’ Nationale Investeringsregeling Klimaatprojecten Industrie (NIKI) program. The funding will support Reju’s planned industrial-scale Regeneration Hub at Chemelot Industrial Park in Sittard-Geleen, covering both the investment phase and ongoing operations, and represents a critical milestone on the path toward final investment decision.

eeden is now a Canopy partner

eeden is committed to enable circular textiles by developing recycling technologies that turn textile waste into valuable raw materials. But the commitment goes further – eeden advocates for supply chain solutions that uphold responsible environmental and ethical standards, protecting global ecosystems including Ancient and Endangered Forests.

Carbios confirms Longlaville plant in France following financing progress

Carbios has reaffirmed its plans to build its Longlaville plant in France within a project financing framework, targeting the start of production in the first half of 2028. The company also reports a solid cash position of around €60 million at the end of 2025 and has appointed Benoît Grenot as Deputy Chief Executive Officer to support the execution of its strategic projects.

New study shows low environmental impact by Cotton made in Africa Organic Cotton from Tanzania

Today, the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) is announcing the results of a comprehensive life-cycle analysis (LCA) for cotton produced in Tanzania under the Cotton made in Africa Organic (CmiA Organic) standard. The study emphasises the small ecological footprint of CmiA Organic verified cotton. This can largely be traced back to the absence of synthetic pesticides, artificial fertilisers, and artificial irrigation. Consequently, CmiA Organic cotton can help the textile industry meet regulatory requirements as well as science-based targets. The results also show that the consequences of climate change threaten the livelihoods of these cotton farmers, even though the type of agriculture they practise barely contributes to climate change.

PERFORMANCE DAYS proves its relevance as the industry’s key meeting point

Held on March 18–19, 2026, PERFORMANCE DAYS once again confirmed its position as a leading international platform for functional textiles. A total of 3.366 trade visitors and around 560 exhibitors gathered in Munich, with the event already kicking off successfully on DAY 0, which received highly positive feedback for its interactive format. Despite challenging conditions caused by the public transport strike in Munich, the event saw strong attendance and a consistently high level of activity across both exhibition days.