Lignin becomes mouldable plastic

The aptly named Professor Tim Bugg has used bacteria to turn lignin into a strong, mouldable plastic.

Professor Bugg worked with a genetically modified bacteria called Rhodococcus jostii which lives in the soil and feeds on lignin.

“I have been working on lignin for 40 years and when I started people said ‘you’re wasting your time’ but now they are thinking this is possible. Still difficult but it is possible,” Professor Bugg said.