As discussed in our previous post, “From Cocoon to Clean Beauty: What You Should Know About Activated Silk”, silk proteins have long held a coveted place in skincare. With their moisture-binding, smoothing, and barrier-enhancing properties, it’s no surprise that brands have embraced silk as a star component.
What if skincare could harness the power of silk without involving silkworms or spiders at all?
Welcome to the future of cruelty-free beauty — powered by biosynthetic silk proteins. These innovations are brewed, not harvested. Engineered in labs through precision fermentation, they offer all the benefits of silk proteins, minus the ethical baggage.
And for conscious consumers — especially those who prioritize vegan, cruelty-free formulations — this could change everything.
Biotech Silk 2.0: Meet the Innovators
Some of these companies are mimicking spider silk rather than silkworm silk, using fermentation and other biotech processes to replicate silk’s structure and benefits—without any animal involvement.
Here are a few of the companies crafting silk-inspired ingredients that are 100% animal-free and built for the next generation of clean beauty:
Bolt Threads — B-silkTM Protein
Developed through yeast fermentation, B-silkTM is designed specifically for skincare.
Lightweight, biodegradable, and barrier-supporting, it mimics the silk proteins’ feel and function.
Givaudan — Silk-iCare™
Vegan silk protein designed to protect and repair the skin.
Spiber — “Brewed Protein™” fiber can be used in skincare. Shiseido and Spiber have partnered to develop a cosmetic ingredient using Brewed Protein™ fiber Spiber is a Japanese biotech company turning plant-based sugars into luxury-grade proteins via fermentation.
The focus is on textiles and fashion, however beauty applications are in development with Sheiseido.
Where Ethics and Innovation Weave Together
Cruelty-Free: No animals involved.
Sustainable: Lower water and land use than traditional silk farming.
Scalable: Lab-grown proteins mean less environmental disruption and consistent quality.
Silk may be ancient, but its future is anything but traditional. With biosynthetic proteins gaining momentum, consumers can soon expect vegan, effective, high-performance skincare powered by biotech.
