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In a groundbreaking step toward the future of sustainable fashion, the Korvaa Consortium — a visionary collective of biomaterial innovators, designers, and filmmakers — has unveiled the world’s first concept shoe crafted entirely from a novel combination of mycelium, bacterial nanocellulose, and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). This pioneering project is more than a product launch; it’s a bold statement on the power of biomaterials and interdisciplinary collaboration to rethink how we design and make things.
A New Standard for Sustainable Design
Footwear is one of the most complex categories in fashion manufacturing, typically requiring more than 30 distinct components — many of them synthetic and derived from petrochemicals. The Korvaa shoe challenges this paradigm head-on. Instead of layering fossil-based materials, the team created a fully functional shoe using just five carefully selected components, each chosen for its unique properties and designed to work in harmony — much like ecosystems in nature.
Inside the Materials
Each part of the Korvaa shoe is a showcase of cutting-edge biomaterial technology:
• The Upper: Created by Modern Synthesis, this part of the shoe is made from nanocellulose — a strong, natural material produced via fermentation. It’s transformed into a durable textile and coating that’s both functional and environmentally responsible.
• The Base Scaffold: 3D printed by Ourobio, the shoe’s internal structure is made from PHAs, a class of bio-based, biodegradable polyesters designed to replace traditional petrochemical plastics.
• The Sole: Grown — not manufactured — by Ecovative, the sole is cultivated in just seven days using mycelium (the root-like structure of fungi), which grows through the PHA scaffold using solid-state fermentation. This results in a fully biodegradable and resilient component.
• Assembly: The shoe is constructed using traditional string-lasting methods — a nod to the craftsmanship of classic shoemaking. The laces and internal lining are made from cotton and lyocell, completing the bio-based design.
Storytelling Meets Science
To bring this journey to life, Finnish science communication company Photino Science Communications documented the collaboration. Their mission: to capture the process, demystify the science, and inspire broader adoption of synthetic biology and biomaterials in mainstream product design.
The Future of Footwear?
The Korvaa shoe is not just a design experiment — it’s a model for how industries can rethink materials and processes from the ground up. By integrating biology, material science, and design, this project shows what’s possible when we align human creativity with nature’s intelligence.
