Pioneering seaweed dye start-up joins the Hutton as a spin-in company, securing £75,000 of Scottish Enterprise funding
The James Hutton Institute is delighted to announce that sustainable dye developer SeaDyes has joined the Hutton as a spin-in company, securing £75,000 of funding from Scottish Enterprise’s High Growth Spinout Programme.
The colourful startup, which was founded in July 2023 by marine scientist and biotech innovator Jessica Giannotti, aims to revolutionise the fashion and textiles industry by producing stunning natural dyes sourced from seaweed. These biobased colourants provide a sustainable, non-toxic alternative to petroleum-based synthetic dyes, which currently leak into the environment at a rate of 140,000 tonnes per year.
In 2024, textile dyeing and finishing accounted for 3% of global CO2 emissions, and projections suggest that figure could rise to 10% by 2050. The industry is also the second largest contributor to global industrial wastewater pollution, impacting entire ecosystems and millions of people. Textile dyes can be toxic, mutagenic, carcinogenic agents and can persist as pollutants.
By aligning with the James Hutton Institute, Scotland’s pre-eminent interdisciplinary scientific research institute at the forefront of transformative science for the sustainable management of land, crop and nature resources, SeaDyes gains access to world-class scientific expertise, facilities, and collaborative opportunities.
The £75,000 of funding provided by Scottish Enterprise will also help accelerate research and commercialisation efforts. With the funds, SeaDyes plans to scale up its breakthrough technology, develop market-ready products and continue contributing to Scotland’s growing bioeconomy.
Jessica said: “SeaDyes started as a project of the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) and my first company Crùbag, and it became a new exciting startup. The urgent need for alternatives and our unique position at the intersection of marine science, sustainable aquaculture and the fashion industry inspired us to explore sustainable material solutions from the ocean. Nature-based solutions like SeaDyes can support the detoxification of the fashion and textile industries and reduce their dependency on fossil fuels. In exchange, the fashion and textile industries can drive science-led innovation, blue growth and job creation.
“The urgent need for alternatives and our unique position at the intersection of marine science, sustainable aquaculture and the fashion industry inspired us to explore sustainable material solutions from the ocean”
Jessica Giannotti, SeaDyes
“Becoming a spin-in at the James Hutton Institute is a transformative step for SeaDyes. We can now treat seaweed as a crop and our dyes as a natural product, and have the capacity, skills and space to refine our technology, develop a market-fit product and scale. Their research excellence and commitment to sustainability and innovation perfectly align with our vision of providing planet-friendly solutions. We have a bold shared vision for the future driven by creative science-led innovation.
“The funding from Scottish Enterprise’s High Growth Spinout Programme is instrumental in focusing our effort, helping us accelerate our technology development and bring our products to market.”
Jonathan Snape, Head of James Hutton Limited, added: “James Hutton Limited is pleased to welcome SeaDyes as part of our spin-in initiative and is eager to collaborate on advancing sustainability in the textile and fashion industries. Together, we are committed to driving innovation in eco-friendly dye solutions and making a meaningful impact on a more sustainable future.”
Leah Pape, Head of High Growth Services at Scottish Enterprise, said: “By providing funding and wraparound support to SeaDyes we can help Jessica turn a novel concept into a commercially viable business that can steer the textile industry in a more sustainable direction, and stimulate the continued growth of the industrial biotechnology sector in Scotland.”
