iBoxit

Company overview

iBoxit is leading the charge to tackle the environmental impact of expanded polystyrene with an initial focus on the fish transportation industry. It was founded as a collaboration between entrepreneur John Farley and the University of East Anglia (UEA) in 2016.

It has developed a sustainable packaging solution for the UK seafood industry that increases the shelf-life of fish during transportation and is constructed of recyclable materials, removing expanded polystyrene (EPS) from the supply chain. The product combines anti-microbial functions to preserve freshness and maximise nutritional value.

Its solution not only helps reduce landfill waste and ocean pollution but also supports the food industry and benefits the global food chain.

The challenge

It is estimated that 9.5bn expanded polystyrene boxes were used in 2020 and this is expected to grow to 13.5bn by 2025. The majority of boxes are single-use and not recyclable. The fishing industry worldwide discards almost half the total consumption into the oceans, with the remainder finding their way to landfill.

The proposition

iBoxit’s new transportation box, which importantly, can be integrated into existing worldwide transportation systems, has the same thermal properties as expanded polystyrene boxes and stacks safely. It is fully recyclable and reusable, with a shelf life of 10 years, offering a more sustainable long-term solution for packaging and distribution.

Through its innovative development of a new, environmentally-sustainable packaging that uses an intricate mixture of existing plastic and plant-based composite to replace the expanded polystyrene boxes that are currently used to transport fish, it’s paving the way for a future where polystyrene could be eliminated entirely. iBoxit is aiming to change the way industry approaches the transportation of fish and ultimately other foodstuffs.

What next?

iBoxit is speaking to many interested parties in the seafood transportation industry with a view to establishing its first commercial partnerships in the next 18 months.

It is running industrial trials which will create around 5,000 prototypes to ship worldwide.

iBoxit won the Business Innovation Award at the Broadland and South Norfolk Business Awards 2025, Start Up Business of the Year at the EDP Business Awards 2025 and also the 2024 Innovation Hothouse competition run in collaboration with UEA and The Royal Society.

In 2023, iBoxit was awarded a grant worth £850,000 from Innovate UK to broaden its product line to include a special spray for use on seafood, which improves shelf-life with no impact on the taste or nutritional benefits.

Testimonial

John Farley, CEO of iBoxit, said, “There is a huge amount of potential at Norwich Research Park to translate the ground-breaking research conducted here into practical and tangible outputs that can offer credible solutions for some of the key challenges we face in areas such as sustainability. Having UEA on campus meant we could develop ideas quickly and with the support we received from Anglia Innovation Partnership we can gain access to things like pre-seed and seed funding, use of top class facilities and a network of contacts; everything an emerging company needs. Throw in the brilliant location on the outskirts of Norwich and the vibrant community on campus and you have a pretty compelling proposition for any company wanting to start out or grow.”

Timeline

2016

• iBoxit is founded by John Farley
• Move to Norwich Research Park as physical tenant taking shared office space

 

2017

• Expansion and funding enable iBoxit to take larger dedicated office space in Centrum

 

2018

• iBoxit secure investor funding

 

2023

• iBoxit awarded AIP Pre-Seed Enterprise Funding with UEA ‘Development of an innovative antimicrobial spray from seaweeds to sustain freshness, by increasing shelf life and reducing food waste.’
• iBoxit was awarded a grant worth £850,000 from Innovate UK

 

2024

• iBoxit announced as winners of the Innovation Hothouse competition
• Tripled the office space taken in Centrum, to incorporate sister companies Ankose CIC, Ediform, Zyvex Ltd.

 

2025

• iBoxit announced as winners of the Business Innovation Award at the Broadland and South Norfolk Business Awards
• Start Up Business of the Year at the EDP Business Awards 2025
• John Farley is involved in a Q&A panel discussion at the Norwich Research Park Enterprise Tuesday conference

 

2026

• iBoxit are announced as finalists in national awards Barclays Bank National Innovation, IOM3 Innovation, BBIA Innovation.