News daily upated news
News daily upated news at www.bioplasticsmagazine.com Nestlé and Danimer Scientific to develop biodegradable water bottle Nestlé (Vevey, Switzerland) and Danimer Scientific (Bainbridge, Georgia, USA) recently announced a global partnership to develop biodegradable bottles. Nestlé and Danimer Scientific will collaborate to design and manufacture biobased resins for Nestlé’s water business using Danimer Scientific’s PHA polymer Nodax. In 2018, the University of Georgia confirmed in a study that Nodax is an effective biodegradable alternative to petrochemical plastics. PepsiCo, an existing partner of Danimer, will also gain access to the resins developed under this collaboration. In 2018, Nestlé announced its commitment to make 100 % of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025. To achieve this goal, the company has already undertaken several initiatives including the creation of the Nestlé Institute of Packaging Sciences. This institute is dedicated to the discovery and development of functional, safe and environmentally friendly packaging solutions including functional paper and biodegradable materials. Stefan Palzer, Chief Technology Officer for Nestlé said, “Strategic innovation partnerships play a key role for Nestlé as we make progress in improving Generic photo of a Nestlé PET bottle the sustainability of our packaging. In order to effectively address the plastic issue in various markets, we need a wide range of technological solutions, including new paper materials and biodegradable polymers which can also be recycled.” Maurizio Patarnello, CEO of Nestlé Waters said, “Nestlé Waters is committed to addressing the growing global plastic waste packaging issue. A biodegradable bottle, which is also recyclable, can help improve the environmental impact of our business in countries without collection and recycling systems.” MT www.nestle.com | www.danimerscientific.com Sulapac welcomes Chanel as an investor Finland-based Sulapac, announced that it has successfully attracted its first investor from the cosmetics industry. Sulapac products use a biodegradable and microplastic-free material made of FSC-certified wood chips and natural binders. They have all the benefits of plastic, yet they biodegrade completely and leave no microplastics behind. The French luxury house Chanel joins previous investors, including Lifeline Ventures, Ardent Venture, Eerik Paasikivi, Ilkka Herlin and Saara Kankaanrinta, Planvest, and Mika Ihamuotila, with its decision to support Sulapac’s ambition to provide a sustainable alternative to the use of conventional plastics in plastic products and packaging. The amount of the investment was not disclosed. The company is pleased with the support of Chanel, which it describes as a ‘leading brand representing the most demanding luxury segment’. “Chanel is definitely one of the forerunners in the luxury segment as they want to invest on latest sustainable material and technology innovations. Our mission to save this world from the plastic waste just became a big step closer,” said Suvi Haimi, CEO and co-founder of Sulapac. In July 2018, Sulapac also received the Horizon 2020 SME instrument grant from the European Union. Additional funding was provided by Business Finland, and A-round funding is planned for 2019. www.sulapac.com Production of PHA bioplastics in Spain Bio-on (Bologna (Italy) and Sociedad Cooperativa General Agropecuaria, a Castilian-Leon cooperative which produces and markets sugar, food oils, biodiesel, various products for food animal and renewable electric energy, have signed an agreement to begin a technical collaboration, the first in Spain, to study and evaluate the opportunity to exploit at industrial scale the Bio-on technologies for the production of PHA bioplastics from sugar beets processing co- and by-products. The two companies will start working together to implement a dedicated and tailored feasibility study for the realization of a PHA industrial plant in Spain, in the factory of ACOR located in the town of Olmedo at Km 153, the selection of this specific production site will guarantee the bioplastic project to benefit from synergies, interconnections and common services with the sugar factory, but without interfering with the latter's production, and specific production capacity will be decided during the project implementation accordingly. "We are satisfied to start this important journey – declares J. Carlos Rico Mateo, President of ACOR – that put in its centre the valorization of our sugar beets as raw materials of an innovative green process without interfering with the sugar production." www.bio-on.it 6 bioplastics MAGAZINE [01/19] Vol. 14
News BASF pulls out of Synvina BASF has notified Avantium of its exit from their Synvina joint venture, effective 15 January 2019. Avantium continues to disagree with BASF’s interpretation of the joint venture agreement. Avantium and BASF are still discussing the terms and conditions of an exit. Upon an exit of BASF, Avantium will acquire BASF’s equity interest in the joint venture and Synvina will continue its operations as a fully Avantium-owned company. In addition, the YXY technology, know-how and people will revert to Avantium. This will allow Avantium to pursue alternative routes for commercializing the technology. Synvina was formed in 2016 to commercialize the YXY technology developed by Avantium. The YXY technology catalytically converts plant-based sugar into FDCA and plastics, such as the new polymer polyethylenefuranoate (PEF). The intent of the parties was to build the first commercial-scale plant for FDCA, the main building block for PEF, in Antwerp, Belgium. “We remain fully confident in our YXY technology and the unique properties of PEF, confirmed by high market interest and existing Synvina partnerships. We look forward to building on the work undertaken within Synvina and being free to pursue further options to reach the full potential of PEF,” said Tom van Aken, Chief Executive Officer of Avantium. MT www.avantium.com Researchers at Tel Aviv University produce PHA with the help of algae A new Tel Aviv University study describes a process to make bioplastic polymers that require neither land or fresh water — resources that are scarce in much of the world. The polymer is derived from microorganisms that feed on seaweed. The invention was the fruit of a multidisciplinary collaboration between Dr. Alexander Golberg of TAU's Porter School of Environmental and Earth Sciences and Prof. Michael Gozin of TAU's School of Chemistry. Their research was recently published in the journal Bioresource Technology. "Plastics take hundreds of years to decay. So, bottles, packaging and bags create plastic continents in the oceans, endanger animals and pollute the environment," says Dr. Golberg. "Plastic is also produced from petroleum products, which has an industrial process that releases chemical contaminants as a byproduct." Are renewablysourced plastics the solution? “To grow the plants or the bacteria to make the plastic requires fertile soil and fresh water, which many countries, including Israel, don't have. Our new process produces plastic from marine microorganisms that completely recycle into organic waste," Golberg explained. The researchers harnessed microorganisms that feed on seaweed to produce polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). It is biodegradable, produces zero toxic waste and recycles into organic waste. "Our raw material was multicellular seaweed, cultivated in the sea," Dr. Golberg says. "These algae were eaten by single-celled microorganisms, which also grow in very salty water and produce a polymer that can be used to make bioplastic.” He continued: "There are already factories that produce this type of bioplastic in commercial quantities, but they use plants that require agricultural land and fresh water. The process we propose will enable countries with a shortage of fresh water, such as Israel, China and India, to switch from petroleum-derived plastics to biodegradable plastics." "We are now conducting basic research to find the best bacteria and algae that would be most suitable for producing polymers for bioplastics with different properties," he concluded. The research was partially funded by the TAU-Triangle Regional R&D Center in Kfar Kara under the academic auspices of Tel Aviv University, and by the Israeli Ministry of Energy and Infrastructures. bit.ly/2BEDZQ9 bioplastics MAGAZINE [01/19] Vol. 14 7
