Market The unconnected
Market The unconnected dots represent other empirically proven GreenPremium levels in the market, which could not be allocated to specific supply chains. The distribution indicates above-average GreenPremium levels for compounds and polymers compared to chemicals or end products. Some of the dots represent specific materials and are coloured (e.g. PLA in blue), others represent more general findings and are marked in grey (e.g. bio-based chemicals in general). Some examples Some companies pay more than double the conventional price, for example for compounds based on PE made from biomass. One reason for FKuR customers to pay this premium is that the product fits their corporate identity, since they pursue sustainability targets and pay attention to their products’ carbon footprint (Michels 2012*). The fischer company brought a green wall plug made from 57% bio-based polyamide to market in order to strengthen their green company image. The biobased version, which is 20% more expensive than the conventional one, is mainly aimed at environmentally minded do-it-yourselfers (Schätzle 2013*). Talking about the end-consumer industry, Coca-Cola is willing to pay up to 25% extra for bio-based PET to be used in drinking bottles. This includes higher production costs caused by retooling and transport (Stadler 2012*). Based on increasing economies of scale, Coca-Cola expects equal prices to petro-based PET by 2015 for the Brazilian production chain, whereas the European way will require further GreenPremium shares due to higher logistics costs (Stadler 2012*). Generally, it is estimated that major companies like Coca-Cola and Danone pay 15-20% and even up to 25% more for Bio-PET or PLA used in packaging. A producer of plastic toys pays a GreenPremium of nearly 100% for a 68% bio-based version that has similar technical properties to ABS in order to take advantage of marketing effects. The final toy product prices are 20-30% higher than competing products (Grashorn 2012*). Within the automotive sector, Toyota has covered 80% of the interior surfaces of one of its hybrid cars with Bio-PETbased plastic. The material, which is used in the seat trim, floor carpets and other interior surfaces, is estimated to raise raw material costs by 15% (Toyota 2011, Ravenstijn 2012*). One reason for this development is to meet internal sustainability targets, e.g. concerning the product’s carbon footprint (Carrez 2013*). Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen are also interested in purchasing bio-PP from Braskem in order to benefit from marketing and supply chain effects. They are expected to pay around 30% extra compared to the current petro-based counterpart, at least for a limited period of time (Ravenstijn 2012*). MT Info: The complete paper (pdf) including a complete *list of all references is available free of charge at www.biobased.eu/markets COMPOSITES EUROPE 7.– 9. Okt. 2014 | Messe Düsseldorf 9. Europäische Fachmesse & Forum für Verbundwerkstoffe, Technologie und Anwendungen www.composites-europe.com Organised by Partners 34 bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/14] Vol. 9
Polylactic Acid Uhde Inventa-Fischer has expanded its product portfolio to include the innovative stateof-the-art PLAneo ® process. The feedstock for our PLA process is lactic acid, which can be produced from local agricultural products containing starch or sugar. The application range of PLA is similar to that of polymers based on fossil resources as its physical properties can be tailored to meet packaging, textile and other requirements. Think. Invest. Earn. Uhde Inventa-Fischer GmbH Holzhauser Strasse 157–159 13509 Berlin Germany Tel. +49 30 43 567 5 Fax +49 30 43 567 699 Uhde Inventa-Fischer AG Via Innovativa 31 7013 Domat/Ems Switzerland Tel. +41 81 632 63 11 Fax +41 81 632 74 03 marketing@uhde-inventa-fi scher.com www.uhde-inventa-fi scher.com Uhde Inventa-Fischer
