About

MarinaTex® began as a student project at the University of Sussex. While studying Product Design, our founder Lucy Hughes set out to explore how natural waste could be used to tackle one of the most pressing challenges of our time: single-use plastic.

In partnership with a local seafood processor, Lucy investigated a variety of waste streams - from offal to shells - eventually identifying fish skins and scales as a promising source of natural polymers. Strong, flexible and typically discarded, they became the foundation for over 100 material experiments.

That research led to the creation of our first product: a translucent, home-compostable film made using marine waste.

Since then, we’ve grown from a single material innovation into a platform for developing high-performance alternatives to fossil-based plastics. While fish waste sparked the idea, we now work with a wide range of natural polymers to create sustainable, scalable materials - for packaging, agriculture and beyond.

Our goal remains the same: to turn waste into value, and create planet-friendly materials that work.