Biopolymers from methane

Calysta Energy and NatureWorks have entered into an exclusive, multi-year collaboration to research and develop a practical, world-scale production process for fermenting methane - a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) - into lactic acid, the building block for Ingeo, lactide intermediates and polymers made from renewable materials.
Methane is generated by the natural decomposition of plant materials, society's organic wastes and is produced from such activities as waste-water treatment, decomposition within landfills and anaerobic digestion.
If the collaboration results in the successful commercialization of this first-of-its-kind technology, the cost to produce Ingeo would be structurally lowered, and the wide range of Ingeo based consumer and industrial products could be produced from an even broader set of carbon-based feedstocks, complementary to what is already in use by NatureWorks. The new technology could be revolutionary because it will provide alternatives to the current reliance on agricultural feedstocks, and with the direct conversion of methane, it will greatly simplify the number of steps and operations needed to convert carbon into performance consumer products.
The companies will share commercialization rights for select products developed under the agreement.