In the News

“Full Circle: Glenn Barrett, founder and CEO of OrthoLite, is celebrating the components company’s 25th anniversary by launching a game-changing midsole material. The party is just getting started.” by Greg Dutter, Footwear Plus

“Barrett credits longtime friend and collaborator Rob Falken, a “genius inventor,” for creating the miracle material, one that uses nitrogen so it doesn’t need to be chemically foamed.”

Read more here and here

 

“OrthoLite Introduces ESD Shield Insole Technology For Work And Service Footwear” SGB Media

“ESD Shield is the result of our pursuit to advance ESD insole technology while delivering the most comfortable, best-performing insoles on the market,” said Rob Falken, Vice President, Global Innovation, OrthoLite.”

Read more here and here

 

“OrthoLite aims to solve The footwear industry’s big waste problem with its first midsole technology”
By Jennie Bell, Footwear News

According to Rob Falken, VP of innovation at OrthoLite, it is “made from responsibly sourced, GMO-free plants and other biodegradable materials, which is then formed in a chemical-free, zero-waste process with no curing.”

Read more here

 

“OrthoLite Says Its First-Ever Midsole Can Be Recycled ‘In Perpetuity’”. By Chuck Dobrosielski, SourcingJournal.com

“In Falken’s view, Cirql “is poised and capable to make a serious dent” in the 20 billion pairs of shoes the industry manufactures annually.”

Read more here

 
Image: Leigh Prather/Adobe Stock

Danimer Scientific Receives US Patent for Biodegradable Marking Wax. Conventional crayons made with petrochemical-based paraffin wax can take decades to decompose. PlasticsToday.com

“By collaborating with Mr. Falken, we combined his knowledge of functional waxes with our expertise in polymer chemistry to create a completely new material that has the potential to bring the crayon industry to the forefront of sustainability. We believe this has potential to help the next generation see how they can reduce the environmental impact of popular consumer products,” said Danimer Chief Science and Technology Officer Phil Van Trump.

Read more here or here

 
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Biobased alternative to petrochemical-based paraffin wax can be used to make compostable crayons. Patent jointly awarded in partnership with environmentally focused material developer Rob Falken.

“The largest crayon manufacturers consume millions of pounds of paraffin wax every year to produce billions of crayons, and this new material offers a way to reduce the environmental impact of these beloved products,” said Falken.

Read more here or here

 
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“Insole Innovation: Catching Up With OrthoLite VP Rob Falken On Its Groundbreaking O-Therm Technology”
By Eugene Buchanan, SGB Media

“We have more than 20 additional technologies in various development stages in all categories, from sustainability to performance, function and value. We’re also expanding beyond insoles, which we’ll introduce in the coming months.”

Read more here or here

 
 
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“OrthoLite’s Lightweight Aerogel Insoles Protect Against Cold”
By Chuck Dobrosielski, SourcingJournal.com

“OrthoLite’s latest thermal insole technology attempts to tackle the perennial problem of cold feet. Unveiled Thursday, OrthoLite O-Therm uses an aerogel-infused, open-cell polyurethane foam to create a thermal barrier that the insole maker says “is unrivaled in any other footwear offering.”

Read more here

 
 
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OrthoLite Creates World’s First and Only Aerogel-Infused Open-Cell PU Foam

“OrthoLite’s proprietary aerogel is O-Therm’s secret sauce,” explains Rob Falken, Vice President of Innovation at OrthoLite. “Our advanced aerogel traps micro-pockets of air without the need for loft, and it won’t lose its effectiveness when compressed under foot…”

Read more here or here

 
 
 
Footwear Plus | Vol 29, Issue 8

Footwear Plus | Vol 29, Issue 8

“Green Dreamer”
By Footwear Plus

“I branched into footwear as a contractor, gaining experience in sourcing, supply chain optimization and product development for a handful of large global shoe brands…”

Read more here

 
 
 
 
 
SDBusinessJournal
 

“Shoe Co. Finds S.D. a Good Fit as Hub of U.S. Expansion”
By Sarah de Crescenzo, San Diego Business Journal

“Falken, a materials developer with an environmental bent, was until recently managing director of materials manufacturer Bloom. That business was formed in 2015 as a partnership between his Carlsbad-based company, Effekt LLC, and cleantech firm Algix LLC, a Mississippi-based company that makes bio-based products from harvested algae.”

Read more here

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Photo by Maggie Chiang

“Bloom’s Mission to Turn Toxic Algae Into Shoes”
By kelly Bastone, OutsideOnline.com

“He connected with Algix, a company that had developed a small-scale method for vacuuming slime out of catfish farms. Algix provided Falken with some algae, and after a month of experimentation, he developed a recipe for plant-based foam…”

Read more here or here

 
 
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“Pond Scum to Surf Gear”
Hatch: Innovation born in San Diego

“San Diegan Rob Falken is finding new use for them with Bloom Foam—the world’s first plant-based alternative to petroleum-based and synthentic foams, which also tackles the problem of an overabundance of algae in freshwater sources.”

Read more here

 
 
Photo by Surftech

BLOOM and Surftech Forge a Path to Sustainable SUP Boards, Collaborates With Like-Minded Partners - MarketWatch

"We're excited about our collaboration with Surftech as they are an established market leader within the paddleboard industry. We hope they will be a beacon for others in the in the industry to consider their environmental impact in all that they do," said Rob Falken, BLOOM's managing director.

Read more here or here

 
 
 
Photo by Vivobarefoot

Photo by Vivobarefoot

“These Sustainable Sneakers Are Made Using Algae”
By Brigit Katz, Smithsonian.com

"The new product is the brainchild of Vivobarefoot, which manufactures ultra-thin shoes, and Bloom, a company that uses algae to make flexible foams. The algae-based foams are sturdy but light-weight, making them a 'naturally perfect material,' for performance footwear."

Read more at SmithsonianMag.com or here

 
 
 
 
 
San Diego Business Journal

San Diego Business Journal

"Partnership Mounts a More Sustainable Attack on Algae"
By Sarah de Crescenzo, NBC7 San Diego

"Solana Beach-based materials development company BLOOM Holdings LLC has partnered with AECOM, one of the world's largest engineering firms, on a new way of managing harmful algae blooms in lakes, reservoirs and river systems."

Read more here

NBC7 San Diego : : Photo by Surftech

NBC7 San Diego : : Photo by Surftech

“Surftech and Bloom Forge a Path to Sustainable Paddleboards”
By Sarah de Crescenzo, NBC7 San Diego

"One paddle board with BLOOM foam will return 176 gallons of clean, filtered water to the habitat from which the algae was harvested and keeps the equivalent of about 123 12-inch birthday balloons full of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere..."

Read more at nbcsandiego.com or here

 

 

 
 
 
Photo by AECOM

New Partnership Offers Hope for Florida’s Algal Bloom Crisis

“BLOOM’s algae harvesting technology safely collects algae from freshwater bodies at risk of algal bloom before a potentially toxic algal bloom grows, and without disrupting the balance to the natural ecology,” said Rob Falken, BLOOM’s managing director.


Read more here

 
 
Photo by Abby Miller

Q&A: Using Algae to Create Sustainable Footwear

“Rob Falken, managing director of BLOOM and founder of Effekt, developed the algae-based foam as a solution to both our dependence on petrochemical ingredients, and to convert the algal bloom infesting the world’s waterways into a useful, renewable feedstock.”

Read more here or here

 
 

How Algae is Helping to Shape a More Sustainable Future in Consumer Products
By Rob Falken and Abby Fisher, for ACS.org - Green Chemistry Institute

“Our inventor and co-founder, Rob Falken, is currently working on a chemical and solvent-free method to safely extract the algae pigment (chlorophyll) from the foam’s feedstock to produce a wider range of custom colors, and a pure white alternative.”

Read more here or here

 
 
San Diego Union Tribune : : Photo by Contreras

“For Carlsbad businessman, mission No. 1 is to heal the environment”
By Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union Tribune

“Rob Falken started a manufacturing business when he was 17 based on his love of surfing: a surfboard wax company. It was successful, but it wasn’t environmentally friendly. He realized he wanted to devote his life’s work to inventing products that would help heal the environment...”

Read more at SanDiegoUnionTribune.com or here

 
NewAtlas.com : : Photo by Alexeys

“'Green’ shoes made from algae”
By Ben Coxworth, NewAtlas.com

"Back in 2015, we heard about how bioplastics firm Algix and clean tech company Effekt were collaborating to make eco-friendly foam based on algae instead of petroleum. The material is now being marketed as Bloom foam – by the newly-formed Bloom company – and you'll soon be able to buy shoes made out of the stuff."

Read more at NewAtlas.com or here

 
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“Algae-Based Foams Give Manufacturing A Green Path” By Sarah De Crescenzo, San Diego Business Journal 

"Effekt CEO Rob Falken and Algix CEO Mike Van Drunen teamed up to launch BLOOM." 

Read more here

 
 
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“Full Bloom: A Carlsbad inventor aims to help the planet one brilliant idea at a time” By Angela Ashman, Modern Luxury San Diego

Though he's a successful businessman, Falken is truly an inventor at heart. "I have literally hundreds of technologies and ideas that I work on," he says.

Read more here

 
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“Bio-Based Steps Up With The First Ever Moulded Shoe Made From Algae” By Emily O'Dowd, Bio-Based World News

BLOOM co-founder Rob Falken explained how the harvesting process works. "We work with any type of blue-green algae," he said. "Blue-green algae has polymeric properties, so we basically vacuum it off a lake and dry it using our continuous solar drying process." 

Read more here

 

“Algae Shoes: How One Local Company Is Saving The Environment Through Footwear” By Danielle Radin, NBC 7 San Diego

“All of our local reservoirs, at one time or another, have had algae blooms that created serious problems for them," said Rob Falken, managing director of Bloom Holdings. "We make algae functional. For most shoes we average about twenty to twenty-five percent algae content.”

Watch the video here

 
 
Photo by Vivobarefoot

“These Shoes Help Clean Lakes--Because They're Made Of Polluting Algae”
By Adele Peters, Fast Company

“To get enough algae to make one pair means cleaning 57 gallons of water, which are then returned to the lake.”

Read more at FastCompany.com or here
 

 
Photo by Ardeleanu

“This Startup Is Harvesting Wild Algae to Make Your Next Pair of Sneakers”
By Brittany Shoot, Smithsonian Magazine

“Co-founder Rob Falken found a way to turn algae into a foam that can be used in sneaker soles and on surfboards...”

Read more at SmithsonianMag.com or here

 
Surfer Magazine, November 2014 : : Photo by Van Swae

“The Inventor: Meet Rob Falken, Surfing’s Rad Scientist”
By Josh T. Saunders, Surfer Magazine

“It took some time to get the formula just right, but the scientific, trial-and-error approach he perfected in the process groomed him for where we find him now...”

Read more at Surfer.com or here

 
 
Algae plastic

“This Company Wants To Stop Our Algae Epidemic By Sucking It Up And Turning It Into Plastic”
By Adele Peters, Fast Company Co.Exist

“Looking at the thick green layer of slime on some Florida beaches, most people see only the environmental crisis: out-of-control algae, fed by human activity and climate change, are killing fish, manatees, and other underwater life. Rob Falken sees a solvable problem and your next pair of shoes...”

Read more at FastCoExist.com or here

 
 
Algae bloom

“Secrets Of The Ooze”
By Justin Housman, Surfer Magazine

“Algal blooms threaten our waterways, but inventor Rob Falken has figured out a way to mitigate the damage by making surf gear from algae...”

Read more at Surfer.com or here

 
 
Slater Designs Traction

“Slater Designs and Firewire Just Partnered with a Company that Makes Traction Pads Out of Algae”
By Alexander Haro, The Inertia

"Slater Designs and Firewire Surfboards are a little bit better for the environment than most other surfboard companies. Recently, they decided they’d try a little bit harder by collaborating with BLOOM Foam to make “arguably the most environmentally-friendly traction pad on the market today...”

Read more at TheInertia.com or here

 
 
algae clean-up

“Shoes made of algae will help us save the planet”
By Jessica O'Reilly, Techly

"Rob Falken is the dude of all dudes. A passionate surfer with a dream to save the planet. Dude!.." 

Read more here

 
algae yoga mat

“Downward Dog Onto A Yoga Mat Made From Algae”
By Emma Hutchings, PSFK

"The joint venture’s aim is to help make sustainable products more easily accessible. It could be used to produce yoga mats, footwear, sporting goods (e.g. traction for surfboards) and toys, to name but a few. Rob Falken, Effekt’s and Bloom Holding’s Managing Director..."

Read more here

 
algae podcast

“The Clean Economy prevails over politics, Bloom Foam made from algae”
By Robert Colangelo, Green Sense

"Instead of clogging waterways, algae is being made into safe, petroleum-free plastic. Inventor and Managing Director Rob Falken with Bloom explains how his company's plastic is reducing..."

Listen at the 18-minute mark: greensense.podbean.com or here

 
 
Photo by Pompermayer

“Tecniq Big Wave Life Vest”
By Josh Sampiero, Red Bull

"As big-wave surfing gets pushed further and further (and deeper and deeper), the risks athletes are taking get bigger and bigger..."

Read more at RedBull.com or here

 
Ian Walsh Paddle Vest

“Ian Walsh | Red Bull | TECNIQ Life Vest”
By Justin Cote, GrindTV

“Ian presented a real design challenge,” said Rob Falken, Managing Director at Tecniq. “He wanted his new custom life vest to incorporate an improved zippered entry and to have a reduction to the overall bulkiness, while maintaining or increasing the desired buoyancy..."

Read more at GrindTV.com

 
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“How Yoga Mats Made from Algae Could Help Save the Planet”
By Gillian Francella, MariasFarmCountryKitchen.com

“As global temperatures continue to rise, and as [the] human population expands, algae blooms are becoming more invasive,” says Rob Falken, managing director of BLOOM Foam, a new business that plans to transform algae into the flexible foam found in yoga mats, tennis shoes, luggage and even bath toys.”

Read more here and here

 
 
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“What If Your Sneakers And Yoga Mats Were Made From Algae Instead Of Plastic?” By Jessica Leber, FastCompany.com

Another advantage, says Falken, is that algae has anti-microbial properties. Bloom is currently doing third-party testing that will validate these properties, which, if successful, could allow Bloom’s customers to market yoga mats or sneakers made from an “anti-odor” material.

Read more here or here

 
 
Photo by Falken

TECNIQ & SYNBRA Introduce The First Truly Bio-Based Alternative To Traditional Surfboard Foam

“For me, the best parts are that the foam is created entirely from a renewable resource and that dangerous chemicals are not used in production. This means the foam is drastically less toxic for the surfboard craftsmen during shaping” stated Falken.

Read more here

 
 
Photo by Erik Aeder

Zotefoams to Supply Ultra Light-weight, High Performance HydroZOTE™ for O’NEILL Competition Wakeboard and Water-Ski Vests

“The foam (HydroZOTE™) is definitely a game-changer,” said Rob Falken, Managing Director at Tecniq LLC. “Personally, I’m really excited about the environmental process utilized to manufacture it” he continued.

Read more here

 
 
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ALGIX & Effekt Introduce World's First Algae-Derived Flexible Foams | PressRelease.com

“Flexible foams have been overwhelmingly made out of non-renewable petrochemicals for decades,” says Rob Falken, Effekt’s and Bloom Holding’s Managing Director. “Over the past year we’ve worked really hard to create a suitable algae biomass alternative that doesn’t compromise performance and that delivers tried–and–true characteristics for all sorts of demanding applications” he continued.

Read more here or here

 
 
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“Flexible Foams with Algae”, Bioplastics Magazine

“As a feedstock, algae biomass is a non-food resource, requiring no pesticides to grow and is found in abundance globally. This ensures a consistent and stable raw material supply for years to come. We are literally turning a negative into a positive,” stated Falken.

Read more here

 
 
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Ian Walsh | Red Bull | TECNIQ Life Vest By Justin Cote, MensJournal.com

“Ian presented a real design challenge,” said Rob Falken, Managing Director at TECNIQ. “He wanted his new custom life vest to incorporate an improved zippered entry and to have a reduction to the overall bulkiness, while maintaining or increasing the desired buoyancy.”

Read more here or here