GreenEdge

GreenEdge was developed as a graduation project in Industrial Design at Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm, Sweden. The project responds to the growing waste problem in the European furniture industry, where more than 10 million tonnes of furniture are discarded each year, much of it ending up in incineration. Common sheet materials such as MDF are difficult to recycle and often rely on synthetic adhesives that limit their circular potential.

As an alternative, GreenEdge is a biobased sheet material designed for interior applications. It consists of approximately 40% roadside hay and 60% waste wood from CNC milling processes. These fibres are bound with casein, a natural milk protein adhesive with a long-standing history in furniture and product design. Natural pigments and flowers are used to colour and enrich the surface, resulting in a material that is biodegradable, toxin-free, and conceived with circularity in mind.

Roadside hay is an underutilised resource that is typically treated as waste. When left to decompose, it can negatively affect surrounding ecosystems and contribute to eutrophication. By harvesting and repurposing this biomass, GreenEdge helps reduce these environmental impacts while supporting biodiversity management along roadsides. The collected hay is transformed into a value-added building material, creating both ecological and material benefits.

In terms of processing, GreenEdge can be milled, pigmented, and customised with embedded flowers, allowing for a broad range of aesthetic outcomes. The organic fibres create a distinctive, terrazzo-like appearance, while the mechanical performance remains comparable to that of conventional MDF, making it suitable for furniture and interior elements.