The interviews and reporting for this story were conducted in January 2025.

Shoes and bags made from tomatoes! That’s exactly what got The Bio Company (TBC) the Best Innovation in Textile at the PETA Vegan Fashion Awards in 2021.

As bioleather — a type of leather made from plant materials — gains popularity, Pritesh Mistry, the 26-year-old founder of The Bio Company has innovated a way to turn tomato waste into fashionable products.

Using tomatoes as the primary raw material, combined with a process free of polyurethane (PU) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), TBC, under the brand ‘Bioleather’, offers a completely sustainable alternative to leather with the added benefit of not having to harm any animals.

Why tomatoes?

“India, being the second-largest producer of tomatoes with about 44 million tons produced annually, faces the challenge of 30-35% of it going to waste,” Mistry says, explaining why he chose the fruit.

“This waste, primarily in the form of skin and seeds, provides a sustainable raw material for Bioleather,” he adds.

Additionally, Mistry says that tomatoes are rich in pectin, a natural polymer that enhances flexibility and strength. Their fibrous structure and natural oils help create a leather-like texture while ensuring biodegradability.

“By utilising tomatoes, we address both

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