New York Funds 12 Projects to Turn Algae, Wool and Farm Waste Into Sustainable Textiles

New York State is investing $120,000 across a dozen projects to turn locally grown wool, flax, hemp and agricultural byproducts into commercially viable textile materials. The New York Fashion Innovation Center (NYFIC) awarded $10,000 grants to each recipient in its fourth funding round to advance fiber processing, biomaterials, product development and workforce training.

From Farm Byproducts to Market-Ready Materials

The awards are modest and many initiatives remain at the prototype or small-batch stage, but together they address persistent gaps that have limited the flow of New York-grown fibers from farms to mills, designers and manufacturers.

At Cochecton-based Flax Fiber Farm, Adrienne Carlile will adapt small-scale milling equipment to spin flax and hemp grown in the state, aiming to produce four prototype bast-fiber yarns. In Brooklyn, Finiks Forge founder Luca Cera plans to extract keratin from wool waste produced by New York farms, mills and processors and use it to develop regenerated fibers for yarn and other textile applications.

Researchers at Syracuse University, Li Jiang and Lihong Lao, will convert low-grade wool into BioWool batting and liners for quilted garments and bags. Two Long Island initiatives — Hog Farm and Mama Farm — will link local growers with home-textile makers and build a farm-to-fiber curriculum for fashion and textile students.

"This round is about turning overlooked materials into opportunity," said Susan Easton, NYFIC's product and marketing director. "From low-grade wool and farm byproducts to algae and mycelium, these grantees are creating the products, markets, and connections New York's textile industry needs to grow."

Biomaterials and Product Innovation

Not all projects start at the farm. Cellsense founder Aradhita Parasrampuria received funding to produce two capsule collections using compostable beads and embellishments made from algae and cellulose as plastic-free alternatives to conventional sequins and beading. Brooklyn-based MushLume Lighting will develop a compostable acoustic wall system combining mycelium with hemp, regenerative wool and state agricultural byproducts.

Other awards emphasize product lines and local manufacturing: Brooklyn brand LowLou will scale production of sauna hats made from New York-grown and processed wool, while Mechanicville-based Flock & Loom will produce a limited-edition collection of patterned blankets woven entirely from regionally grown wool.

The remaining grants support an upcycled apparel and community sewing program from The Bad Juju Design, an expansion of Bronx Fashion NYC's youth workforce program, and a study to identify barriers that prevent more New York wool from entering the textile supply chain.

Part of a Bigger Push

The grant program is one component of the Fashion Innovation Center, backed by a $9 million state investment announced in 2023. A consortium led by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute manages NYFIC alongside partners including the Fashion Institute of Technology, Hudson Valley Textile Project, SUNY Morrisville, Made X Hudson and The Field to Fiber Company.

Including this latest class, NYFIC has supported 36 projects. Grantees receive mentorship, sourcing introductions and access to a three-month accelerator focused on customer discovery, business planning and go-to-market strategy. Recipients will also be able to use NYFIC's textile innovation lab at RPI, scheduled to open to the public this fall and equipped for fiber prototyping, testing and product development.

A fifth and final scheduled round of $10,000 sustainable textile innovation grants will open on Oct. 30, with applications due Jan. 6. NYFIC is also planning a separate adaptive-fashion grant program for 2027.