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New technology allows eggshell waste to be used as a skin regenerative and wound healing bandage

Last updated: Jan 22, 2025

Summary

A new Norwegian collaboration has developed a patch made from the eggshell membrane that can heal chronic wounds. A few years ago, the company Biovotec began a collaboration with Nortura in Re in Vestfold, where thousands of eggs are hatched each year. Now the three-leaf clover may together have developed a solution based on what has until now been virtually useless waste: 800 tonnes of eggshells.

Problem

Chronic wounds are a serious health problem, with great costs both for the people affected and for society. Worldwide, it leads to an amputation every 30 seconds, and as much as five percent of the world's health-related expenses come from the treatment of such wounds.

Solution

Now a patch made from the eggshell membrane that can heal chronic wounds is being made and tested for commercialized use. It is not the shell itself that is used, but the thin membrane that lies between the egg white and the shell. This membrane has healing properties has been known for a long time, but no one has been able to utilize it industrially. In the past, the excess shells /shell waste went to farmers, who used them as fertilizer. But then came new rules that required heat treatment of the eggshells. This led to them going to Norsk Gjenvinning one of the largest waste management companies in Norway, instead. Until now, Nortura Eggprodukter has actually paid to get rid of the shells.

Outcome

Norsk Gjenvinning states that they can tell that the waste they collect from eggshells has been reduced drastically – 800 tonnes a year to be specific – and this is only from Nortura Eggprodukter. In the past, eggshells were a waste product that cost money to get rid of. It has now possibly become a valuable resource that helps solve serious health problems.