Students discuss the process behind creating soy-based foam

Four Purdue University students have created the first biodegradable, compostable, vegan, and non-toxic, soy-based foam. StyroSoy, an alternative to polystyrene, commonly known as Styrofoam, earned $20,000 in the 2023 Student Soybean Innovation Competition. 

Team member Louis Edwards Caceres-Martinez from Colombia says they got the idea for the product when moving instruments from one lab to another.   

“Basically the only option at that moment was packing peanuts. So, we were looking for alternatives to replace this kind of product because they are very bad from the environmental and economic perspective.

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