MycoTile Insulation Panels

The Problem

Kenya has an annual housing demand of 250,000 units with an estimated supply of just 50,000, leaving an 80% deficit. Hundreds of thousands live in informal housing to cover this deficit.

The Solution

MycoTile offers a high performance and cheaper alternative to traditional building materials. A carbon negative process is used to bond agricultural waste (such as maize cobs, coffee husks, coconut coir and rice husks) with mushroom mycelium to create a building material composite. The pilot product is wall and roof insulation, which have superior acoustic performance and fire-retardant properties compared to the available alternatives. The fire-retardancy is naturally enhanced by the chitin present in mycelium. MycoTile intends to prototype a larger portfolio of products, such as ceiling tiles, construction blocks, MDF-style panels and furniture. An important growth step was the conclusion of a co-manufacturing contract with a Kenya government entity. MycoTile is establishing partnerships with small scale farmers, who are compensated for providing agricultural waste, to assure security of raw material supply.

Stats

MycoTile employs over 150 casual rural workers in Kenya and has provided insulation services to ten clients.