Tocco Report: STRAW 2030 EDITION

From Agricultural Residue to Functional Material

Straw rarely commands attention. It is the dried, forgotten residue left after harvest — baled, burned, or buried. To many, it still evokes images of thatched roofs, barnyard bedding, or folklore architecture destined to fall with a huff and a puff. But behind the humble exterior of this agricultural by-product lies a material that quietly defies expectation — and, increasingly, reinvention.

Straw is not cultivated. It is the inevitable result of grain — the stalk left standing after wheat, rice, barley, or rye has been reaped. As such, it is one of the most abundant and overlooked bio-based fibres on the planet.

The Tocco team wants to reframe this narrative — to explore how value can emerge from what’s typically left behind, and how rethinking residue like straw opens the door to new forms of design, material innovation, and circular potential.