By Ian McConnell
A PRODUCER of “carbon-negative” insulation has secured an £803,000 grant to help fund a new factory in the Scottish Borders, which is due to open next year with the creation of 30 jobs.
Edinburgh-based Industrial Nature has secured the funding from the Circular Economy Investment Fund (CEIF), which is administered by not-for-profit organisation Zero Waste Scotland and supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). IndiNature, owned by private individuals including founders Scott Simpson, Sam Baumber and Ewan Mealyou, uses 100 per cent natural materials to create eco-friendly insulation for homes and commercial properties. Its finished products are deemed carbon negative because they absorb more carbon than the emissions produced to manufacture them.
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The firm’s insulation, currently produced by a manufacturer in France to which IndiNature ships its raw materials, is made from biotech materials and traditional local crops including industrial hemp. Products include loft rolls, flexible batts, and thermal and acoustic insulating boards – for any type of building.
The ERDF and Scottish Government-funded Zero Waste Scotland said that, by around 2050, the new Borders factory is “forecast to have had the same impact on addressing the climate crisis as planting more than five million trees”.
Mr Simpson, chief executive of IndiNature, said: “IndiNature has industrial-scale solutions for the three biggest environmental challenges in the construction industry: resources, carbon and waste. By using renewable natural resources, a net storage of carbon and a circular product with no waste, IndiNature helps developers construct healthy buildings which are good for the planet.
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With the support of the CEIF, we are proud to be able to provide local manufacturing jobs and support local farm suppliers in rural economies. This fund has been critical to support businesses like ours taking innovation risks in order to make positive impacts on communities and the planet.”
Jane Stewart, who chairs the CEIF, said: “IndiNature is a fantastic example of a company that has embedded circular economy principles throughout its operations – from its raw material to its manufacturing process and right through to second life opportunities for its products.
“The company is working proof that, even in challenging times, circular economy business models can have benefits for the environment and the wider economy.”
The CEIF has been live since April 2016. The maximum grant it offers is £1m.
A spokeswoman for Zero Waste Scotland said: “Industrial Nature’s grant is one of our bigger interventions.”
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