Politics In addition to
Politics In addition to the pilot plant construction, the supportive measures for 2011-2015 to enhance commercial investments in the local bioplastics industry will target five areas, namely: 1) biomass availability (applying export parity price for sugar cane and cassava chip/starch) 2) bioplastic R&D 3) standardization system 4) business and investment privileges; and 5) market promotion and environment management. The total of 600 million Baht (€ 13.6 million or US$ 20 million) has been committed by the Thai Government to support the implementation of the supportive measures in these five areas. Having put in place the national policies specifically designed to induce the development of the local bioplastics industry, Thailand set out on a new path to become a regional hub for bioplastics. Since the implementation of the National Roadmap, various support programs, initiatives and infrastructure have been put in place to further enhance the capacity of the Thai bioplastics industry. These developments have enabled the local bioplastics industry to make enormous progress in the past several years. New compounding technology and products have been developed and commercialized, such as a polymer compound from a blend of PBAT and PLA using calcium carbonate as a filler which is suitable for producing film packaging, bioplastic packaging for dried organic fruits, bioplastic lunch box which can withstand high temperature, etc. On the whole, it is expected that development of the local bioplastics industry in accordance with the National Roadmap and its supportive measures will result in economic value of over 6.2 billion Baht (€ 144 million or US$ 204 million) for the country. Also, from environmental and waste management perspectives a number of pilot projects have been initiated and successfully carried out. Most recent examples include the following projects: • In view of Thailand’s continuing problems with landfills, NIA and its partners recently launched a pilot project in which bioplastic bags are distributed to residents of pilot municipalities for collecting household organic waste, which is then converted into organic material. During the initial stage this project targeted tourist destination areas, such as the Kra-dung-nga district and Samet Island, where there is an urgent need to reduce the plastic waste buildup in the area. • Another good example is the potential application of bioplastics as nursery planting bags. These planting bags would be compostable within one year and hence leave no plastic waste in the soil. Moreover, Thailand currently offers various forms of incentives specially designed to create an investment-friendly atmosphere for the bioplastics industry, such as a tax incentive program offered by Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI) which features corporate income tax exemption up to 8 years and an additional 50% reduction of corporate income tax for 5 years. Without any doubt, the Thai Government is firmly committed to promote the Thai bioplastics industry and will provide required assistance and supports to ensure sustainable growth and development of this industry in years to come. Taking into consideration Thailand’s comparative advantage in raw materials and its strengths in R&D and production capabilities, coupled with favourable government policies and the adoption of the National Roadmap which provides a clear direction for the local industry, Thailand is well positioned to become a new bioplastics hub in Asia and to serve as a focal point for international cooperation in bioplastics in the region. www.nia.or.th 48 bioplastics MAGAZINE [03/11] Vol. 6
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