Daily News

At the upcoming Pharmapack 2020, Bensheim, Germany-based Sanner GmbH, the market leader for effervescent tablet packaging, will present its new Sanner BioBase effervescent tablet packaging for the first time. Sanner BioBase is the first biopackaging of its kind made of renewable raw materials and complies with all demands of modern pharma packaging.

Leading global children’s entertainment company Mattel has announced its goal to achieve 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastics materials in both its products and packaging by 2030. In the first half of 2020, the Company will debut its first product aligned with this goal: the iconic Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack made from sugarcane-based plastics and packaged in 100% recycled or sustainably sourced material.

Braskem, Biowash and Greco & Guerreiro have announced plans to launch a new packaging solution for homecare products made from biobased plastics and post-consumer resin, a combination said to substantially reduce CO2 emissions. The new solution will be used for both the one and the five liter packs of the Brazilian company Biowash, a pioneer in the development of 100%-biodegradable natural homecare products.

At the UN climate conference in Madrid, bamboo was one of the topics of discussion. Climate experts said it could offer an important biobased alternative to plastic, reports INBAR, the International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation.

Kaneka Co., Ltd. (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo) has completed the capacity enhancement work for “Kaneka Biodegradable Polymer PHBH®” at its Takasago Plant as scheduled. The completion ceremony was held on December 17th. The investment amount was approximately 2.5 billion yen (41 million EUR) [1], and the production capacity is about 5,000 tonnes / year, five times the previously existing capacity.

Stora Enso is investing EUR 9 million to build a pilot facility for enabling the production of bio-based plastics to serve as a barrier layer in transparent packaging. The pilot plant will convert plant-based sugars into the renewable building block required to make PEF, a bio-based plastic, mainly targeting the food and beverage industry. The pilot plant will be located at Stora Enso's Langerbrugge Mill in Belgium.

Sustainable technology company Anellotech is significantly expanding its program with Plas-TCatTM, a new process technology aiming to convert a wide range of plastic waste directly into chemicals – which can then be used to make new, virgin plastics.

The Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU), an EU body, reconfirmed to award the PEFerence consortium, coordinated by Avantium Renewable Polymers, with a €25 million “PEFerence” Horizon 2020 grant.

At the recent Raw Materials Summit 2019 in Berlin, the discussion centred on how waste, plants, CO2 - the resources of the future – can propel the transition away from a throwaway society. ‘Products must be recycled in an ecologically efficient manner’.

Three years ago, in October 2016 at the previous edition of K, Novamont announced it was working on the development of a proprietary technology for the production of hydroxymethylfurfural acid, furandicarboxylic acid and a series of polymers for captive use.

Tetra Pak, together with its supplier Braskem, has become the first company in the food and beverage industry to responsibly source plant-based polymers using the Bonsucro standards for sustainable sugar cane.

Danimer Scientific and Genpak are partnering to create a new line of biodegradable food containers. The eco-friendly foodservice items created by the two companies will help reduce the environmental impacts of non-biodegradable packaging produced annually worldwide.

At the the 8th Biocomposites Conference in Cologne, as usual, the delegates voted for the Innovation Award 'Biocomposite of the Year 2019'

The Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, based in California, USA, has awarded the Material Health Certificate GOLD level certification to Licocare RBW 102 Vita, Licocare RBW 106 Vita and Licocare RBW 300 Vita, bio-based lubricating and dispersing aids developed and produced by Clariant - a further confirmation of their excellent environmental profile and contribution to a circular economy for plastics.

It would behove a well-respected and globally operating organisation like Greenpeace to do its homework when publishing reports on important issues. The false assertions and half-baked facts presented here harm Greenpeace's credibility and cast doubt on the organisation's 'green' credentials.

Moving ahead with its strategy to advance the use of PEF in high-value applications, Avantium Renewable Polymers has announced plans to open an Avantium branch office in Japan.

Global specialty plastics provider Eastman and NB Coatings, a leader in paint on plastics for both domestic and transplant original equipment manufacturers, have developed a new solution for interior Class A painted surfaces with Trēva™ engineering bioplastic.

PolyOne has announced the launch of reSound™ OM thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs), the latest addition to its sustainable solutions portfolio. These new formulations utilize between 40 and 50 percent bio-renewable content derived from sugarcane and offer hardness levels and performance comparable to standard TPEs.

Avantium today inaugurates its plant-based MEG demonstration factory in Chemie Park Delfzijl, the Netherlands, bringing industry yet another solution to reduce the reliance on fossil resources. Hosting the opening are Nienke Homan, regional minister of the province of Groningen, the Netherlands and Avantium CEO Tom van Aken.

Italy-based chemical producer So.G.I.S. has commissioned NextChem to construct a plant that will be used to transform residual fats into oleic acid, an intermediate product for the production of non-fossil biodegradable, biocompatible and safe lubricants.

Total Corbion PLA's peer reviewed Life Cycle Impact Assessment of PLA (Poly Lactic Acid) produced from Sugarcane in Thailand has been published in the "Journal of Polymers and the Environment" and confirms PLA's low carbon footprint.

Avantium has joined the Paper Bottle Project - an innovation community bringing together some of the world's leading players in materials, design and technology on the development of a sustainable paper bottle.

TIPA, a leading developer and provider of fully compostable flexible packaging solutions, has announced that it has secured $25M in its recent financing round. Investors who participated in this financing round include Blue Horizon Ventures, Triodos Organic Growth Fund and existing investors Chestnut Holding LLC and GreenSoil Investments.