MicroGREEN raises $6.9 million

MicroGREEN uses less PET than conventional plastics.

A Washington company that says it can make plastic cups for hot drinks that use 100 percent recycled plastic and are entirely recyclable announced that it closed a $6.9 million investment round in late May.

MicroGREEN says Houston-based Waste Management (NYSE: WM) is a major investor in the Series B round which also included Seattle-based WRF Capital, Northwest Energy Angels and other private investors.

The company plans to use the financing to build out its Arlington manufacturing facility where it says it will be able to produce more than 100 million square feet of plastic each year.

MicroGREEN injects billions of microscopic bubbles into its plastic, which reduces the volume of plastic while retaining strength and insulating properties consumers demand, the company says. The resulting cups are superior to plastic-coated paper cups and even compostable beverage containers that use plant-based plastics, says CEO Tom Malone. “We’ve created a true cradle-to-cradle solution,” he says.

The company has yet to make any sales, though it is in talks and getting a good reception from a number of consumer packaged goods companies, according to Malone. The company’s product is less expensive than PLA-coated paper and cups using expanded polystyrene (EPS), Malone says. MIcroGREEN’s cups also have less impact and energy use than plastic-coated paper cups and EPS foam cups, according to a life cycle analysis of the three products (PDF) done for the company.

MicroGREEN was founded in 2002 and is an effort to commercialize the air-injecting technology, which was developed at University of Washington. It currently has 20 employees and plans to hire 20 more by the end of the year, Malone says.