Daily News

Something not deemed possible has become a reality: fully biobased and biodegradable glass fibre reinforced compounds.

The launch of a new bioplastics pilot plant in the Flanders region in Belgium will enable a new bioplastics production technology, ready for implementation at industrial scale.

Avantium (Amsterdam, the Netherlands), a leading technology company in renewable chemistry, has published Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) data for its plantMPG™ (plant-based mono-propylene glycol) from its Ray Technology™: a chemical intermediate used in a variety of applications including in functional fluids and unsaturated polyester resins.

K 2022 visitors can look forward to new Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland) additive solutions to progress more sustainable plastics and reduce resource use.

During the K’2022 Novamont (Novara, Italy) launched the first stick pack for a powdered multivitamin and multimineral supplement made of a paper laminate and Mater-Bi bioplastic film which is compostable and recyclable together with household food waste.

PADM Medical (Winnipeg, MB, Canada) PRECISION ECO™ plant-based procedural mask with ear loops receives emergency use authorization (EUA) from the US FDA – It is the world's first plant based procedural mask to receive EUA for use in medical and healthcare settings.

Bioplastics can be a broad and at times confusing term as it describes both what they are (biobased) and what they do (biodegrade), while not necessarily doing/being both.

Rosenberger Optical Solutions & Infrastructure (Augsburg, Germany), an expert in fibre optic connections, cabling solutions, and infrastructure services, announces that its in-house plastic packaging for patch cords will be switched to biobased and biodegradable polymers in the coming year.

The Helsingborg-based greentech company GAIA BioMaterials AB (GAIA) has a world first ready just in time for the opening of Scanpack (October 4th), the largest packaging exhibition in northern Europe. After a long and challenging development process GAIA has finally cracked the code for a thermoformable version of their biomaterial Biodolomer®, that not only can withstand microwave heat, but also has the potential for passing the home composting requirements. The solution is to be found in a combination of the proprietary recipe, as well as the new, unique production equipment, which the company installed in its factory in Helsingborg during last year.

Neste, Idemitsu Kosan, CHIMEI and Mitsubishi Corporation have agreed to build a renewable plastics supply chain utilizing bio-based hydrocarbons (Neste RE™) for the production of styrene monomer (i.e. bio-SM), and its mass balanced renewable plastics derivatives including acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (i.e. bio-ABS*). The bio-SM production in Japan and the renewable plastics production in Taiwan will mark the first of such production in each country, and they are planned to take place in the first half of 2023.

Palsgaard (Juelsminde, Denmark), a leader in plant-based additives for the plastics industry, has announced that its Einar® 611 biobased anti-fog surfactant has been successfully specified by a major Korean supplier of food-grade polyethylene (PE) film solutions.

Plastic pollution is a problem that begins long before it reaches the environment, and so must be the solution. To this aim, the RevoluZion project will develop innovative biobased bioplastic material formulations using advanced enzyme engineering techniques.

This technology synergizes with recently developed proprietary bio-polymer technologies and provides a commercially referenced production of biobased succinic acid (bio-SAc) that serves as feedstock for the production of polybutylene succinate (PBS).

As a result of new research involving a cutting-edge facility at Montana State University (Bozeman, USA), agricultural biomass that would otherwise sit in farmers’ fields could instead be turned into plastic beverage bottles and food containers.

Our oceans have become the world's largest landfill, accumulating more than 13 million tonnes of plastic annually, according to Bioplastics International1 (Scottsdale, USA), an Arizona-based producer of the world's first sugar cane alcohol water soluble PVA (Polyvinyl Alcohol) as well as many bio resins from plant starches.

Orthex (Espoo, Finland), a leading Nordic producer of household products, has selected a range of INEOS Styrolution’s sustainable Luran® ECO raw materials for its range of SmartStoreTM Compact storage products.

CropEnergies AG (Mannheim, Germany) has acquired a stake in the Dutch start-up for biobased chemicals Syclus BV (Maastricht). CropEnergies purchases 50 % of the company's share capital. The investment volume amounts to EUR 1.8 million.

Covestro (Leverkusen, Germany) will now be supplied with the two mass-balanced raw materials phenol and acetone from INEOS’ (London, UK) INVIRIDIS™ product range. Covestro uses these CO2-reduced products to manufacture its high-performance polycarbonate plastic.

Toray Industries, Inc. (Tokyo, Japan), announced last week that it has developed the world’s first 100% bio-based adipic acid, a raw material for nylon 66 (polyamide 66), from sugars derived from inedible biomass.

BASF and footwear design house Maddy Plant have collaborated to explore the possibilities of BASF’s innovative material solutions and use industry-leading technologies that enable energy-efficient production, for its concept athleisure shoe ‘MADGAMMA – Intertekk Saturn’.

With the new PLAYMOBIL product series Wiltopia, children discover our Earth, its special features and its inhabitants. Without dry facts, but with lots of play fun and sustainable material in proven Playmobil quality!

Unilever’s (London, UK) biggest laundry brand, Dirt Is Good (also known as Persil, Skip, and OMO), has introduced the newly designed capsule to help decarbonise the laundry process whilst delivering top cleaning performance.

Advanced Biochemical Thailand (ABT) has recently launched its new product brand, EPINITY with a new website. EPINITY is the new brand name for ABT’s Epichlorohydrin (ECH), a biobased, drop-in, and competitive ECH for use in a wide range of downstream industries.

CJ BIO, a division of South Korea-based (Seoul) CJ CheilJedang, announced today that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the global hotel chain Accor (Issy-les-Moulineaux, France) to begin developing hotel amenities that are made with polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), an eco-friendly biodegradable material.

A new addition hits the VerdessenceTM product family: BASF’s (Ludwigshafen, Germany) Care Creations® is launching the new biopolymer Verdessence RiceTouch on the global market.

The German NDR (Norddeutscher Rundfunk), a public radio and television broadcaster based in Hamburg, recently reported about the German startup "napur" trying to tackle the plastic waste problem with local resources.

Neste (Espoo, Finland), the world's leading producer of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel produced from waste and residue raw materials, has agreed to acquire 100 % of Walco Foods (Waterford, Ireland), an Irish trader of animal fats.

Sustainability leader Genomatica (Geno – San Diego, CA, USA) alongside long-time collaborator Aquafil (Arco, Italy) successfully completed the first demonstration scale production runs for plant-based nylon-6.

Green Dot Bioplastics (Emporia, KS, USA), a leading developer and supplier of bioplastic materials for innovative, sustainable end-uses, has expanded its Terratek® BD line with nine new compostable grades that are targeted for single-use and packaging applications.

Origin Materials (West Sacramento, CA, USA), the world’s leading carbon negative materials company with a mission to enable the world’s transition to sustainable materials, and Revlon (New York, NY, USA), a leading global authority and beauty trendsetter in the world of colour cosmetics and hair care, recently announced a joint initiative to develop advanced carbon negative materials for next generation cosmetics packaging.