Materials that
replenish the planet.

Our evolving portfolio of circular materials come from a generous resource and decompose into healthy soil.

✓ Made with responsibly sourced seaweed
✓ Home & industrially compostable
✓ Supports healthy ecosystems & communities

Thermoplastic Seaweed Pellets (TPSea™)

Biobased resin designed to go anywhere plastic goes – with a couple big differences. TPSea™ comes from the ocean, and is designed to return to the soil.

Meet the heart of Sway’s evolving product portfolio: TPSea™ – an entirely new, patented category of biopolymer pellet that is home compostable and 100% biobased. The #1 ingredient? Seaweed; a regenerative ocean crop that replenishes ecosystems as it grows.

TPSea™ can be transformed into an ocean of clean, next-generation materials that drive down pollution, from flexible films, to rigids, and beyond. The beauty of this solution is that it’s designed for globally scaled infrastructure, inviting the legacy plastic industry into the future of advanced material innovation.

Sway-Thermoplastic-Seaweed-Resin-TPSea™

These pellets are full of golden potential.

✓ Melt processable
✓ Scalable
✓ 100% biobased
✓ Majority seaweed

Using heat, traditional thermoplastic pellets can be shaped into any format. But with heat, seaweed’s natural inclination is to burn. Sway’s miraculous technological breakthrough? We've made seaweed melt. And not just melt – it flows through traditional plastic manufacturing, unlocking a streamlined path to impact at scale.
This technology is an entry point to solving the broad array of plastics present in our everyday lives.

TPSea Flex™ Film

First-of-its kind seaweed packaging, designed for scale.

Did you know 5 trillion bags, wrappers, and pouches are produced each year? That’s 160,000 bags every second! Many of these single-use plastics will only be used for mere seconds, but less than 5% are recycled – meaning the vast majority go to landfill or flow into nature.

For the first time, ubiquitous plastic packaging can be replaced with Sway’s patented flexible film made with TPSea™. Produced using globally scaled manufacturing, TPSea Flex™ matches the technical performance brands require, while adding ecological and societal value along the way.

Pairing the benevolence of seaweed with cutting-edge materials science, our inaugural TPSea Flex™ film is strong and versatile, well suited for a range of packaging applications across industries – from fashion to beauty and beyond.

Thermoplastic-Film-Header_TPSea-Flex_Sway

Delivers performance.
Designed for circularity.

✓ Strong
✓ Moisture-resistant
✓ Luxurious look & feel

TPSea Flex™ is composed of seaweed, plants and compostable polymers. It can withstand a wide array of temperatures and exposure to moisture. The frosted finish is luxurious in both look and feel. Embodying true circularity, this material decomposes naturally in home and industrial compost environments.

TPSea Flex™ represents the first big step towards a future we can all get behind – less plastic, more plants, and a healthier planet.

Firstwave™ Film

Made entirely from seaweed and plants, optimized for rapid decomposition back into Earth.

The evolution of single-use plastics stemmed from noble intentions: convenience, hygiene, flexibility. We embrace these characteristics with one more addition. What if plastic could heal ecosystems rather than harm? This is the thesis that started Sway.

Sway Firstwave™ film is our team's first pursuit towards a plastic-free future, using seaweed as the primary ingredient. By using a liquid-based production method, we’re able to honor seaweed’s inherent gelling properties. Ocean-farmed seaweed is harvested, processed, gelled, and cast into rolls of film suited for premium solutions where flexibility and full transparency are desired. While traditional plastics persist for centuries, Firstwave™ lasts only as long as needed before returning to nature as a soil amendment.

Untitled-design-3
Sway-x-EcoEnclose-1

Trusted and loved by brands dedicated to a plastic-free future.

✓ Certified home & industrial compostable
✓ Certified 100% biobased

✓ Majority seaweed
✓ Fully transparent

TCHO uses Sway Firstwave™ to package chocolate.
Le Club uses Sway Firstwave™ to package swim trunks.
Noah uses Sway Firstwave™ to package shirts.
Ales Grey uses Sway Firstwave™ to package shoes.
Graf Lantz uses Sway Firstwave™ to package greeting cards.

Ask Us Anything

What are "pellets" and "resin"?
Today’s plastic industry largely relies on resin: petroleum-based pellets that are melted and formed into finished products through global manufacturing systems.
 
To replace plastics at scale, Sway has formulated an entirely new category of biopolymer resin that we call Thermoplasic Seaweed, or TPSea™ for short. TPSea™ is a Certified 100% Biobased, majority pellet that can melt and flow wherever plastic goes. Currently, we're combining TPSea™ with compostable polymers to create TPSea Flex™ — the world's first scalable flexible film, starring seaweed as a key ingredient!
What is "thin film"?
Flexible plastic film is under 10mil thick, typically made from polyethylene resin (LDPE or HDPE). Examples include shopping bags, polybags, bubble wrap, food wrappers, and cling wrap.
 
To replace plastics at scale, Sway has formulated the world's first scalable flexible film, made with seaweed as a key component! We call it TPSea Flex™, and it's currently being used in the format of Sway Polybags with more innovations in the pipeline.
How does seaweed turn into "plastic"?
Sway sources responsibly farmed seaweed from around the world. Farmers harvest and dry the seaweed, then sell to biorefineries who treat the seaweed and extract the natural polymers. Our team creates proprietary formulations at Sway Labs in the SF Bay Area. Using various types of traditional plastic infrastructure, Sway’s domestic manufacturing partners transform our formulations into pellets and flexible films. In the case of the Sway Polybag, our pellet technology — TPSea™ — is blended with compostable polymers and extruded into rolls of flexible film. Finally, conversion partners transform rolls of film into their final format and add print customization in the process, if desired!
Where does the seaweed come from?
Sway sources from a vetted global network of seaweed suppliers that responsibly farm and harvest seaweed. We have trusted sourcing partners located all over the world, including Indonesia, Chile, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Madagascar, and beyond! Seaweed grows abundantly on nearly every global coastline, and Sway is committed to expanding and diversifying our sourcing strategy as we grow.
 
See our Impact page for more details.
How do I dispose of Sway packaging?
Compost! All Sway products are designed for both home and industrial compostability, an imperative piece of our global waste puzzle. Firstwave™ is already Certified Home & Industrial Compostable by TUV Austria, while TPSea Flex™ certification is actively underway, with results expected in late 2025.
Are Sway products 100% biobased?
• Firstwave™ film is certified 100% biobased.
• TPSea™ pellets are certified 100% biobased.
• TPSea Flex™ film is majority biobased. TPSea Flex™ film is made by combining TPSea™ pellets (made entirely from seaweed and plants) with a non-renewable, certified home compostable polymer. Our team is actively increasing biobased content with every iteration.
What is TPSea Flex™ Film made from?
Seaweed, plants, and home compostable polymers. It's the first material of its kind to be produced at scale, thanks to our incredible scientists and manufacturing partners achieving the previously unthinkable!
 
The majority of our formula is TPSea™, Sway’s proprietary technology which is made entirely from seaweed and plants. To make TPSea Flex™ film, we blend TPSea™ with a non-renewable, home compostable polymer.
 
While we work towards a 100% biobased version of this film, the addition of this home compostable polymer currently provides non-negotiable performance qualities that help our material run smoothly through industrial-scale equipment. Innovation takes time, and with further R&D, we’ll be able to phase out this non-renewable component. Each iteration is designed to incorporate even more seaweed and plants!
 
Until our material is “perfect,” we recognize TPSea Flex™ as a huge first step towards a future we can all get behind: less plastic, more plants, and a healthier planet.
Seaweed-Icon-2_Blue-1

Feeling seaweed-curious?

Sway-Footer-Wheel
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

Copyright © 2025 Sway Innovation Co. - All Rights Reserved.