ALT TEX

About ALT TEX

ALT TEX is a Toronto-based biomaterials company developing a biodegradable and carbon-neutral fabric to replace polyester. Founded in 2020 by CEO Myra Arshad and CTO Avneet Ghotra, the startup utilizes a patent-pending fermentation technology to convert post-industrial food waste into a polyester-alternative textile.

The founders, who have collaborated since high school, combine Arshad's family background in textile manufacturing and corporate sales with Ghotra's expertise in biochemistry and environmental science. Ghotra, who left medical school to co-found the company, previously started a non-profit to reduce plastic pollution, while Arshad has prior entrepreneurial experience in sustainable solutions. The concept began as a kitchen experiment before securing academic validation and funding to move into a formal lab setting.

The company's business model focuses on selling its textiles directly to fashion brands. This approach allows brands to meet sustainability targets without altering their existing supply chains, as the material is designed to work with standard polyester manufacturing equipment. ALT TEX's fabric offers the performance and durability of polyester while being cost-competitive with other sustainable alternatives due to its use of low-cost food waste as a feedstock. The material is also industrially biodegradable.

A single shirt made from ALT TEX fabric can reportedly divert 1 kg of food waste from landfills and 9 kg of carbon emissions from the atmosphere. The company has developed a fabric prototype said to be 70% stronger than cotton and has secured $2.3 million in funding to scale its technology toward commercialization.