Seaweed material offers compostable alternative to plastic test kits

The article highlights a significant environmental issue caused by the widespread use of lateral flow tests, which generate over 12 grams of plastic waste each and are discarded shortly after use. Abingdon Health, a UK-based company, has partnered with Symbio Technologies Ltd to develop diagnostic test housings made from a patented, compostable material derived from red seaweed. This bio-based alternative can replace traditional petroleum plastics without altering test functionality and can be processed using existing manufacturing equipment, facilitating easy adoption by producers. Seaweed offers several environmental advantages: it grows rapidly without pesticides or arable land, thrives in marine environments, and its material fully biodegrades within 8–12 weeks without harmful by-products, even outside industrial composting facilities. Abingdon Health has successfully produced prototypes in common test formats, demonstrating comparable stability and shelf-life to plastic versions. The company’s production capacity can scale to over 100 million units annually, presenting a scalable solution to the plastic waste crisis in healthcare diagnostics. The article underscores the