Fayetteville’s grocery co-operative Ozark Natural Foods is now carrying a compostable substitute for the traditional plastic trash bag created by two University of Arkansas graduates.
When cycleWood Solutions Inc. President and CEO Nhiem Cao and co-founder Kevin Oden were MBA students at the Sam M. Walton College of Business, they created cycleWood Solutions Inc. to make more environmentally friendly alternatives to current products by using renewable resources.
This resulted in the company’s trademarked single-use Xylobag, a plastic bag alternative made of lignin, an organic polymer derived from wood, combined with compostable material that breaks down in about 12 weeks in a commercial composting facility.
“They are also the most sustainable choice since they do not require additional harvesting of trees or other plants,” Cao said. “Xylobags are the best compostable bags available today.”
Since the company was formed in 2010, Cao and Oden have toured the U.S. collecting capital from startup competitions and winning awards for their innovative business concept, including a bronze Edison Award in 2012.
Although the company has since moved its primary operations to Dallas, cycleWood Solutions, an Innovate Arkansas firm, maintains a presence in the Genesis Technology Incubator at the Arkansas Research & Technology Park in Fayetteville.
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