La malédiction du plastique

Je partage avec vous ce reportage passionnant diffusé sur Arte.

Comment faire face à la menace écologique que font peser les déchets plastiques ? Un tour du monde à la fois loufoque et très documenté.

Villes et campagnes, montagnes et déserts, rivières et fonds sous-marins : les déchets de plastique ont tout envahi. Alors que ce matériau n'existe que depuis un siècle, il polluera encore notre environnement dans plusieurs milliers d'années. Le constat est alarmant, mais une prise de conscience commence à se faire à l'échelle mondiale. Non seulement il importe de fabriquer moins d'objets, contenants et emballages en plastique, mais leur recyclage pourrait être amélioré. Des entreprises proposent désormais des solutions alternatives. Les stylistes s'y mettent et proposent des éléments de décoration, des robes et des accessoires en plastique recyclé ! Il serait aussi possible de fabriquer des matériaux ayant les mêmes vertus que le plastique mais biodégradables, en utilisant des végétaux. Du bioplastique, en quelque sorte. Un passionnant périple où alternent images choc (le garbage patch dans l'océan Pacifique, les décharges indiennes à ciel ouvert, les plages de Hawaii...) et paroles d'experts.

Vous pouvez visualiser ce documentaire poignant en 4 parties : ici, ici, ici et là

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SPI Bioplastics panel questions oxo-degradability claims

SPI Bioplastics Council Supports European Bioplastics Position That "Oxo-biodegradable" Technology's Claims of Being Biodegradable are Scientifically Unsubstantiated.

The Bioplastics Council, a special interest group of SPI: the Plastics Industry Trade Association, today announced the release of a position paper that questions the scientific validity of biodegradability claims made by producers of “oxo-degradable" and "oxo-biodegradable" products. The Council’s paper formally supports the point of view put forth by European Bioplastics in a July 2009 publication.

Since its inception in 2008, the SPI Bioplastics Council has placed consumer and industry education at the core of its mission. In fact a key Council objective for 2010 has placed a new emphasis on clarifying “bioplastics-related” marketing claims. In the position paper released today, the Council outlines the issues and questions concerning oxo-biodegradables and other degradable additives in order to support consumers, retailers and the plastics industry in identifying unsubstantiated and misleading product claims.

Producers of pro-oxidant and biological additives use the term “oxo-biodegradable” to describe the resulting products made using the additives. This term suggests that the products can undergo rapid biodegradation under many different end-of-life conditions. However, the main effect of oxidation is fragmentation, not biodegradation, into small particles which remain in the environment for an undetermined amount of time. These results do not meet the internationally established and acknowledged standards and certifications that effectively substantiate claims on biodegradation under certain specific end-of-life conditions.

“In 2010 we made a pointed decision to insist on bringing clarity to the bioplastics market,” said Bioplastics Council Chair Frederic Scheer, CEO of Cereplast, Inc. (Hawthorne, Calif.). “Allowing the brand owner, retailer or ultimately the consumer to decide what they consider a biodegradable product to be is risky, as they may lack the scientific knowledge to make an accurate decision. The Bioplastics Council supports legitimate scientific data as recommended by state and federal agencies and stresses the need for all companies, when making product claims, to work along guidelines defined by the Federal Trade Commission.”

“The Council has issued this position paper because its member companies believe that it is the duty of the industry to provide clear, substantiated scientific data that will assure stakeholders that the products offered meet their requirements for end-of-life disposal options, including industrial composting, home composting, water, soil or the ocean,” added Melissa Hockstad, SPI vice president, Material Suppliers Council.

Launched in 2008, the Bioplastics Council was created to provide a forum for resin and additive suppliers, as well as processors and equipment suppliers, to promote the development of bioplastics. Currently, the eight members of the group are Arkema, BASF Corporation, Cereplast, Inc., DuPont, NatureWorks LLC, PolyOne, Teknor Apex and Telles (a Metabolix/ADM Joint Venture).

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Sustainable Packaging : Reduce carbon footprint

Sustainable packaging definitions and principles agreed

Global leaders across the packaging, food manufacturing and retail sectors have approved a set of common definitions and principles for sustainable packaging.

The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) announced the measures as part of its ongoing effort to drive global change in packing. The body said the breakthrough in establishing a “common language” would help a global debate on “packaging in the context of environmental, economic and social impacts”.

“Sustainability is a shared responsibility,” said Roger Zellner, GPP Co-Chair and director, sustainability, research, development & quality of Kraft Foods “By creating a common language and identifying shared global industry metrics this initiative will enable manufacturers and retailers to work together to develop packaging solutions to help achieve agreed sustainability goals.”

Nestlé Unveils Eco Bottle

Nestlé Waters Canada unveils one of the lightest plastic bottles in the Canadian beverage industry. Weighing just 9.16 grams on average, this bottle contains 27 percent less plastic than its predecessor Eco-Shape bottle, which was introduced in 2007, and 60 percent less plastic than the Company's original, pre-Eco-Shape 500 ml.

"With about 60 percent of Canadians drinking bottled water, reducing the amount of plastic in our bottles is one of the best ways to reduce our carbon footprint," said Gail Cosman, President, Nestlé Waters Canada. "Our first-generation Eco-Shape bottle was a significant step and is credited with reducing our plastics requirements by 4.59 million kilograms annually since 2007 and also reducing CO2 emissions by 8 percent annually. It has also reduced high pressure compressed air consumption by 40 percent, which has reduced our hydro-electricity consumption considerably. In the last five years, we have reduced CO2 emissions by 30 percent for every litre of water produced."

Kraft Sheds 150M Pounds of Packaging

Kraft Foods has achieved its goal of reducing 150 million pounds of material from its supply chain two years ahead of schedule. The Packaging Eco-Calculator is used early in a product’s design phase, and that has helped with a number of new products.

For instance, the Oscar Meyer Deli Creations package now uses 30 percent less paperboard, helping keep 1.2 million pounds of packaging out of landfills a year.
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In Europe, removing packaging layers for Milka chocolate bars reduced weight of shipping cases by 60 percent, eliminating 5.7 million pounds of packaging.
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In addition to design, Kraft is putting an emphasis on choice of packaging materials. For instance, in the UK, Kraft is selling refillable Kenco coffee bags in addition to the traditional glass jars.
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In North America, packaging for coffee brands Maxwell House, Yuban and Nabob has gone from steel cans to composite paperboard, with a corresponding 30 percent reduction in weight. Kraft is also working to improve the recycling rate in the U.S. by working with RecycleBank and TerraCycle.
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In Australia, Kraft salad dressing bottles were redesigned, helping eliminate 100,000 pounds of plastic a year.

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BioSac by Calcia : Un sac de ciment compostable

En 2008, le marché national du ciment en sac a généré près de 35.000 tonnes de déchets d’emballage, qui aujourd’hui sont traités comme des déchets banals, déposés simplement en site de classe II ou incinérés.

En droite ligne avec sa politique Innovation et Développement Durable, Ciments Calcia apporte désormais, avec BioSac by Calcia, une solution concrète à tous les artisans et entreprises du bâtiment confrontés à la problématique et à l’enjeu de la gestion des déchets de chantier. Développé en collaboration par les groupes Barbier, Limagrain, Mondi et Ciments Calcia, ce sac entièrement biodégradable et compostable ajoute désormais la dimension environnementale à ses qualités intrinsèques de résistance et de conservation.

Notons que les sacs de ciment sont aujourd’hui constitués d’une double couche de papier type Kraft pour la résistance et d’un « free film » en polyéthylène (PE) pour la conservation du produit. Mais cet assemblage de matières de natures différentes ne permet pas une valorisation immédiate de l’emballage.

L’innovation de BioSac by Calcia réside en la composition de son « free film », qui utilise désormais une matière 100 % naturelle issue de la farine de maïs, le Biolice®… une vraie réponse à la problématique de gestion de cette nature d’emballage.

Grâce à sa composition exclusive, BioSac by Calcia répond à la norme EN 13 432, relative aux emballages valorisables par biodégradation et compostage, et s’est vu attribuer le label OK Compost (N° d’agrément S145).

Cet emballage, nouvelle génération, a en effet passé tous les tests avec succès, garantissant une décomposition à 96,3 % de sa matière en seulement 12 semaines, et ce, en situation de compostage industriel… Des résultats contrôlés par le bureau d’études belge AIB Vinçotte.

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La compostabilité, selon la norme EN 13 432, se vérifie au niveau de 4 critères :

• La biodégradation : il s’agit de la dégradation par l’action d’enzymes spécifiques entraînant une modification significative de la composition chimique (avec dégagement d’eau, de CO2, de méthane et de chaleur) ; le seuil minimum de biodégradabilité, en centre de compostage devant être de 90 %, dans un délai maximum de 6 mois ;
• La fragmentation s’illustre par la décomposition physique de la matière en fragments de petite taille ;
• Les métaux lourds avec la vérification du niveau de présence de certains métaux tels que le mercure, le plomb, le cadmium…
• L’écotoxicité qui consiste à confirmer l’absence d’effet néfaste sur la croissance des plantes.

Notons que la biodégradabilité est un processus de décomposition qui, sous l’action combinée de 4 éléments - l’oxygène, l’eau, les micro-organismes et la chaleur -, aboutit à la bio-assimilation non toxique pour l’environnement.

Communiqué de Presse

Sied Emballage (Altea Packaging Group), Certifiée ISO 22000

Tunis, TUNISIE, 27 janvier 2010. Sied Emballage, filiale du Groupe Altea Packaging, vient d’être certifiée conformément à la norme ISO 22000 version 2005 par l’organisme AFAQ-ASCERT International. Elle devient ainsi la 2ème unité du groupe, à recevoir cette certification. En décembre 2008, sa consœur Cogitel était la première et unique entreprise du secteur de l’emballage flexible en Afrique du Nord à détenir une telle certification.

Comme le souligne à cet égard Monia Ben Amor, Responsable Qualité Maghreb pour Altea Packaging: « ce choix vers la certification ISO 22000 nous permet d’anticiper les demandes des clients et de répondre à la réglementation en vigueur ». L'ISO 22000 est le fruit d'un consensus international qui harmonise les exigences pour un management systématique de la sécurité dans les chaînes logistiques alimentaires et offre une solution unique pour les bonnes pratiques sur une base mondiale.

Cette démarche a permis de fédérer l’ensemble du personnel autour d’un projet d’entreprise très motivant et impliquant chaque collaborateur dans un processus d’amélioration continue. Cette certification a également permis de consolider et de valider toutes les techniques de bonnes pratiques et d’analyses du danger sur le site de l’entreprise.

Pour le Directeur Général de Sied emballage, Khalil Sellami, « adhérer aux valeurs de la norme ISO 22000 était une évidence car assurer la sécurité des denrées alimentaires des produits emballés est primordiale. Notre plus grand souci est d’assurer la sécurité du consommateur et de préserver l’image de marque de nos clients majoritairement des industriels du secteur agro-alimentaire».

Selon M. Hedi Zeghal, Président du Groupe Altea Packaging, une telle certification n’est pas seulement un atout supplémentaire pour améliorer la pénétration du Groupe dans des marchés aussi exigeants que le marché européen, c’est aussi un moyen d’offrir à l’ensemble des acteurs de la région qui s’engagent eux-mêmes dans une démarche ISO 22000 d’avoir un partenaire capable de leur apporter une solution adaptée au niveau de l’emballage.

A propos d’Altea Packaging :

Altea Packaging est le leader de l’emballage flexible de la région MENA avec une présence industrielle en Europe. Avec une capacité installée de plus de 40 mille tonnes par an, plus de 780 collaborateurs et 9 unités industrielles du Maroc à l’Égypte en passant par la France et bien sûr la Tunisie, berceau du Groupe et noyau de son développement, Altea Packaging possède un savoir-faire rivalisant avec les plus grands groupes internationaux du secteur. Altea Packaging est l’unique acteur à offrir un service de proximité aux multinationales présentes sur l’ensemble de la région et aux entreprises souhaitant un service de qualité par un fournisseur fiable disposant d’une longue expérience du secteur.

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Pour plus d’informations : http://www.altea-packaging.com/
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A propos de Sied Emballage :

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Sied Emballage, SA au capital de 3,4 MD, créée en 1980, est classée numéro 2 dans le secteur de l’emballage flexible en Tunisie, après Cogitel. Avec un chiffre d’affaires dépassant les 11 MD en 2009, elle emploie plus de 80 personnes sur un site d’environ 8000 m2 situé dans la zone industrielle Ksar Said à Tunis. Certifiée ISO 9001-2008 et ISO 22000-2005, Sied emballage intègre des activités d’impression Hélio et Flexo, de contre-collage, d’enduction et de découpe d’étiquettes et d’opercules en aluminium.

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Pour plus d’informations : http://www.sied.com.tn/

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Can Consumers Change Plastics?

With a growing demand to increase the sustainable attributes of consumer products, “innovation” is the name of the game in almost every industry – including plastics.

What’s New – And Why?

Innovations in plastics are aplenty, and many of them involve technically intensive lingo and terminology that we’re probably not qualified to comment on here (polymer nanocomposites, anyone?). But to give it to you short and sweet, here are a few concepts that we’re particularly excited to see roll out:

• Greater use of easily recycled materials - Of all the plastics you can recycle, PET offers one of the most widely available recycling options. And rather than develop new types of plastics, some companies are opting to increase the chance their product will be recycled by using materials widely collected, like plastic #1. For example, Sprint recently updated its accessory packaging, which is now made from PET, a plastic that’s easier to recycle than its predecessor, PVC.
• Greater use of bioplastics – While the jury is still out on the benefits of bioplastic materials (stay tuned for a new article next month where we explore this topic in greater depth!), the idea that natural materials are being used to substitute fossil fuels is intriguing. Additionally, innovative products are rolling out on the market this year. Now, consumers may have the opportunity to compost plastic at home, something we hadn’t seen before.
• Increased use of post-consumer waste – Sometimes, the easiest plastic to get is the plastic that’s already in the form you need. Many companies are opting to find ways to continually improve their use of recycled materials, like Nestle’s re-source water bottle project. But ideally, product-to-product life cycles (for example, the bottle-to-bottle paradigm Coca-Cola Recycling is adopting with its new plant) are the wave of the future.

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Read more…

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Boost for innovative environmental sandwich packaging solutions

The current increased concern about saving the planet is boosting interest in sustainable packaging solutions for food products such as sandwiches where easy disposal is an issue.

This trend is particularly strong in Europe where there is growing interest in a variety of sandwich types. In the UK, the largest sandwich market in the world for example, more than 2 billion ready-made sandwiches are consumed each year. The French eat 1.8 billon sandwiches and Germany is showing a growing interest in these take-away snacks.

Consumers are more and more interested in packages' green credentials; excess packaging is frowned upon. At the same time, food producers are looking for ways to save in waste and recycling charges without compromising the high protection values.

Read the full article in the winter 2010 issue of Central and Eastern European Packaging magazine.

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Pouches to lead the way in packaging

According to a new study “Beverage Packaging Market Assessment — A Benchmark Study,” conducted by Proactive Worldwide, Inc., on behalf of PMMI, pouches are expected to show the greatest percentage growth between 2010 and 2020, increasing as much as 105.9 percent, from $545 million to 1,378,000,000: New processing and packaging equipment has made pouches cost-effective for high volume operations, as companies can now run pouches as fast as other packaging formats.

Environmentally, pouches require much less landfill space than plastic bottles and some pouches are completely biodegradable. In addition, when compared to glass bottles, pouches require a small fraction of the space and shipping infrastructure: The beverage volume transported in a truckload of quart-sized pouches would require nine trucks of glass or plastic bottles.

Read more

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Sustainable Packaging: Threat or Opportunity?

Packaging leaders agree on the growing importance of sustainability, but there remains a great deal of frustration in the industry at the ‘disproportionate’ focus placed on packaging and confusion about what ‘sustainable packaging’ means, according to a new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Sustainable Packaging: Threat or Opportunity? is based on 20 in-depth interviews with senior executives from leading packaging companies in Europe. The research found that over 70% of respondents feel that sustainable packaging solutions offered a competitive advantage, but that although producers, retailers and customers all claim to want a more sustainable packaging product, they are, in general, unwilling to pay a premium, unless their brand is already built around a sustainable or environmentally responsible message.

Another finding from the discussions is that there is no industry consensus on what constitutes ‘sustainable packaging’. The debate, notably in the UK, has been dominated by a narrow focus on reducing packaging weight and arguments around whether one material is more or less sustainable than another. A consensus-based definition from our respondents on the attributes that sustainable packaging should have includes the following:

• The packaging weight and volume has been considered and effectively reduced;
• Waste-to-landfill has been reduced through designed-in recyclability, reusability or degradability of the substrate;
• The packaging has a lower environmental footprint in terms of resources used in production as well as emissions to air and water;
• The packaging effectively reduces waste through extending shelf life and prevents damage or contamination; and
• The packaging is able to communicate effectively and engage consumers as to brand attributes and sustainable credentials.

Spotlight on bioplastics: Not a panacea for sustainable packaging

Although currently a niche product with c. 300k tonnes of production a year, the supply of bioplastics is forecast to grow to more than 1m tonnes globally by 2011.

Bioplastics are seen by some as a sustainable alternative to petrochemical-based plastics, as they are produced from renewable sources and are theoretically biodegradable. However, certain issues with bioplastics have led many in the industry to believe that they are not the panacea that they were first thought to be.

• The relative lack of supply of bioplastics means that prices remain higher than those for the mainstream petrochemical-based plastics.
• Many of the bioplastics are only biodegradable under very specific circumstances
• The presence of a certain proportion of some bioplastics in the waste stream can contaminate the stream and make it more difficult to identify and recycle petrochemical-based plastics.

It is still early days and their usefulness and impact are not fully researched. It may be necessary to introduce a separate recycling loop for those products, as the contamination of the conventional recycling loops may render other materials unusable.

In the short term bioplastic-based packaging is likely to remain a niche market segment

Download file (332k)

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La boite de conserve, "la MiAM BOX", un emballage en perte de vitesse

L'UPPIA, Union inter-professionnelle pour la Promotion des Industries de la conserve appertisée, impulse un nouveau ton et une nouvelle image à la conserve. En choisissant pour la première fois le média télévision, elle ambitionne de toucher le plus grand nombre, avec une cible prioritaire les 25-34 ans.

Autant dire que la tâche sera rude pour que cette campagne atteigne sa cible. La boîte de conserve est en perte de vitesse et risque de l'être davantage encore dans les années à venir.

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Primo, à cause de la polémique entourant le BPA utilisé dans la fabrication de résines de revêtement pour les boîtes de conserves alimentaires. Secundo, l’augmentation des consommations nomades et les nouvelles exigences des consommateurs, surtout en terme de praticité, pousse vers de plus en plus d’emballages flexibles plus pratiques et innovants; la conserve, quant à elle, donne résolument l'image d'une consommation d'une autre époque. Tertio, le prix de la boîte de conserve a augmenté d'au moins 40% partout dans le monde. Et finalement, les nouveaux emballages flexibles possèdent un meilleur bilan environnemental; moins lourds, ils nécessitent moins de matériaux et consomment moins d’espace lors du transport.

Bref pour de nombreux produits, les boîtes de conserve ont tendance à être mises au rancart au profit de sachets flexibles (Stand-up Pouch).

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Shrink Packaging : Moins dans l’emballage au même prix

L’industrie agro-alimentaire est fortement touchée par l’augmentation des prix des denrées alimentaires (sucre, farine et lait surtout), à laquelle s’ajoute l’augmentation du prix de l’emballage, lui-même, tiré à la hausse par l’explosion des cours du pétrole.

Depuis toujours les manufacturiers doivent trouver la juste équation entre, d’une part le prix de leur produit, leurs profits, l’emballage et, d’autre part, les aléas du marché comme l’augmentation des prix de la matière première, et une compétition de plus en plus féroce. Pour rester concurrentiels et plutôt que d’opter pour une augmentation des prix de leurs produits, plusieurs marques ont trouvé une solution miracle : procéder à une belle cure d’amaigrissement de l’emballage et tant qu’à faire du contenu. Si la taille de l’emballage diminue, et si le contenu est réduit, le prix reste toutefois le même; c’est ce qu’on appelle le «Shrink Packaging». Le plus souvent, le consommateur ne s’en aperçoit pas car cela se dissimule derrière un nouveau design plus moderne et plus alléchant.

Ce phénomène a toujours existé, mais les compagnies sont de plus en plus nombreuses à le pratiquer. Depuis l’automne 2008, on assiste à une recrudescence de cette pratique qui s’est largement accentuée en raison de la crise. Selon plusieurs études de marché, prés de 30% des biens emballés, et pas seulement des produits alimentaires seraient concernés par une réduction de taille (poids/volume).

Il est pourtant certain qu’il serait plus rentable pour les entreprises de communiquer sur ce « grignotage de contenu » et de l’expliquer au grand public, plutôt que de le passer en douce. Cela pourrait en effet affecter l’image de la marque. Le consommateur fidèle pourrait en effet se sentir berner et finir par bouder celle-ci. En la matière, comme dans d’autres domaines, la transparence a ses vertus. Par ailleurs, cela pourrait être l’occasion pour les manufacturiers de communiquer sur la dimension environnementale d’une telle démarche de « Shrinking ». En effet, la plupart du temps, réduire l’emballage à la source peut être l’occasion de diminuer grandement l’impact environnemental du produit.

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Vous pouvez consulter Ici le dossier sur le phénomène du «Shrink Packaging»

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Crédits photos : Mouse Print

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Les bioplastiques représentent une vraie alternative

Certes les bio polymères ont encore des limites. Mais les travaux des chercheurs et des industriels portent leurs fruits. Leurs propriétés se rapprochent de plus en plus des polymères standards. Jan Switten, consultant indépendant revient sur leurs contraintes, mais aussi les caractéristiques et les opportunités qu'offrent ces produits. Autant de points qu'il abordera plus en détail dans la formation intitulée "Bioplastiques : caractéristiques, applications et limites", organisée par les Techniques de l'Ingénieur le 12 février 2010.

ETI : Les bioplastiques sont-ils beaucoup plus chers ? Quels sont les critères de comparaison ?

Jan Switten : " Les bio polymères sont effectivement plus chers que les polymères standards. Il faut compter entre 1 et 2 euros pour un polymère standard contre 2 à 7 euros pour un bio polymère comme le PLA [ndlr : Acide PolyLactide]. Mais ce prix peut-être encore plus élevé. Il faut compter 10 à 12 euros pour le PHA [ndlr : Polyhydroxyalkanoate]. Ce coût est dû à deux principaux facteurs : un processus de transformation et une chaîne de production complexes qui intègre de nombreuses étapes ; et des volumes qui ne représentent encore qu'une fraction des polymères fossiles. On ne fabrique que 220.000 tonnes de PLA par an dans le monde, 80.000 tonnes de PHA et 320.000 tonnes de biomatériaux basés sur l’amidon. Les économies s'échelle sont donc moins importantes que pour un polymère standard.
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De fait, lorsqu'un industriel opte pour un bio matériau, son critère de choix n'est pas le prix, mais la durabilité. Or il y a fort à parier, qu'à l'instar de ce qui se passe aux Etats-Unis, les fabricants de plastiques du futur, sous la pression de la législation, devront indiquer le "carbon foot print" [ndlr : émission de CO2] de leurs matériaux. Ce qui, à terme, fera pencher la balance en faveur des bio matériaux car leur empreinte est en principe proche de zéro.
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Les bioplastiques ont-ils toutefois des limites ?
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Oui. Les caractéristiques des bioplastiques ne sont pas encore au même niveau que les plastiques standards. Les utiliser implique certaines contraintes. La plupart des bioplastiques n'offrent pas une barrière suffisante à l'humidité. Ils ne sont donc pas adaptés pour emballer des biscuits. Leur stabilité thermique doit également être améliorée, surtout pour les PLA. Jusqu'à 50 °C, ces produits sont stables, mais au delà, ce qui peut arriver dans les entrepôts de stockage, ils se déforment. Enfin, ils ont des limites mécaniques. Ils peuvent être trop durs ou trop flexibles. Résultat, ils cassent. C'est particulièrement vrai du PLA.

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Parvient-on à y remédier et à se rapprocher des propriétés des polymères habituels ?

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Tout à fait. Certes, les propriétés des bio polymères restent différentes de celles des polymères traditionnels, mais elles se rapprochent de plus en plus. Les bioplastiques, par exemple, offrent une excellente barrière à l'oxygène. Par ailleurs, en mélangeant un bio polymère et un polymère standard, comme l’écoflex de BASF, on parvient à obtenir des propriétés mécaniques similaires à celles des plastiques d'origine fossile, avec une empreinte carbone très faible. Même chose pour le PHA : ses propriétés mécaniques sont excellentes. Enfin, les bioplastiques, comme matériaux polaires, sont faciles à imprimer. Autant d'avancées qui offrent à ces produits de nouveaux débouchés, comme, par exemple, dans le flaconnage en cosmétique ou dans l'automobile. Un constructeur comme Toyota emploie des bioplastiques pour ses voitures. Cela renforce son positionnement de constructeur vert et justifie des prix plus élevés.

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Et qu'en est-il du vieillissement des bioplastiques ?
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Il est très variable d'un produit à l'autre. Le choix du bioplastique se fera en fonction de la durée de vie du produit et si l'on désire, ou non, qu'il soit compostable. Si l'on veut qu'un produit soit biodégradable, il faut choisir un plastique dont le vieillissement sera rapide. C'est souvent le cas dans l'emballage, mais aussi pour les récipients jetables comme les gobelets. En revanche, si l'on veut un produit avec une longue durée de vie, mais qui soit recyclable, comme dans l'automobile, il faut opter pour certains matériaux renouvelables ou pour des mélanges avec des matériaux d'origine fossile.

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Quels sont les produits de base pour obtenir les bioplastiques ?

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La première génération de bioplastiques était fabriquée avec des produits alimentaires tels que le maïs, le sucre de canne ou encore la pomme de terre. Ce qui pose des problèmes de déontologie. Aujourd'hui, les industriels et les chercheurs travaillent sur une deuxième génération de bioplastiques, obtenue, cette fois-ci, avec des déchets de l'agriculture ou de l'industrie forestière. Ces produits existent déjà et sont fabriqués aujourd'hui essentiellement par des entreprises américaines et japonaises. Les européens sont plus en retraits et en sont davantage au stade de la recherche. En France, l'université de Strasbourg est assez en pointe dans ce domaine, tandis qu'en Hollande, c'est l'université d'Utrecht.

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Les bioraffineries sont-elles assez nombreuses aujourd'hui ?

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La réponse est clairement non. Il n'y en a que quelques unes. Les plus connues sont au nombre de trois : Novamont en Italie, Cargill aux Etats-Unis et Stora Enso en Suède. Ces structures sont l'équivalent des raffineries de pétrole. Elles sont capables de fabriquer toute la palette de produits dérivés depuis les bioplastiques en passant par les biocarburants. Mais la situation devrait rapidement évoluer. Il y a une grande activité dans ce domaine en ce moment et très certainement, de nouvelles entités vont rapidement se développer.

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Où en est ce marché aujourd'hui ? A quelle vitesse croît-il ?

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Actuellement, le volume de production double tous les ans. C'est un marché qui croît très vite et ceci pour plusieurs raisons. Il y a la pression législative bien sûr, mais aussi celle qu'exerce les consommateurs. Par ailleurs, en raison de l'évolution des propriétés de ces produits, la distribution mais aussi l'industrie deviennent des débouchés de plus en plus importants. Aujourd'hui, les biomatériaux sont utilisés dans l'emballage, mais aussi dans l'industrie automobile, dans l'électronique et la téléphonie."

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Propos recueillis par Gauthier Bernard et Anne-Laure Béranger

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Source : Techniques Ingénieur via Biopol

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Packaging Trends for 2010: Smart and Sustainable

Food safety and sustainability are the driving forces behind innovation in food packaging. Increases in functionality, improvements in food safety, economics and meeting environmental and legislative measures are pushing packaging actors to “Think outside the box”.

Sustainable Packaging

The move toward more sustainable packaging is being embraced by consumers, manufacturers, retailers, advocacy groups, and world governments alike. Consumers are increasingly interested in their personal impact on the environment and are demanding more from manufacturers. Manufacturers are looking for ways to reduce, downgauge, lightweight their packaging. Companies are benefiting from these efforts thanks to material savings and increased demand from green consumers. The benefits from these efforts are that many companies are realizing material savings in cost structures and increased demand from green consumers. A recent report from Pike Research anticipates that eco-friendly packaging will nearly double in revenues between 2009 and 2014, from $88 billion to $170 billion. Concurrently The International Standards Organization is developing six standards for international packaging, which cover source reduction, reuse, recycling, energy recovery, chemical recovery, composting and biodegradation.

Smart packaging

Smart packaging has potential to influence the packaging sector greatly, as it fits perfectly with the food safety strategy, traceability and brand protection. Smart packaging is a packaging system that is capable of carrying out intelligent functions (such as detecting, sensing, recording, tracing, communicating, and applying scientific logic) to facilitate decision making to extend shelf life, enhance safety, improve quality, provide information, and warn about possible problems. Most companies understand that the added expense of improving packaging to help prevent recalls or a liability case is often far less than the cost of losing many customers because of massive recall which are damaging to the brand. According to a recent study from The Freedonia Group, demand for smart packaging is projected to climb 8.3 percent annually to $1.9 billion in 2013, well above the overall packaging industry.

Many factors such as costs, legal hurdles, reliability and effectiveness, costumer education, acceptance and liability, food producer, consumer and retailer acceptance will be needed to enable an introduction on a large scale. Despite these hurdles, there is a strong view that smart packaging will be a technical tool in the market with a high potential, covering both more transparent communication to consumers and the need for the retail and food industry to better control the food production chain.

In conclusion, a bright future may be anticipated for sustainable and smart packaging. These innovative packaging definitively offers environmental, food safety and economics benefits for both customers and packaging actors.

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Oxo-biodegradable: not suitable to be landfilled or composted

Writing in the November/December issue of bioplastics, a European trade publication, Dr. Gerald Scott, long time proponent of oxo-biodegradable technologies and chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Oxo-biodegradable Plastics Association, stated that products made with oxo-bioedgradable additive technologies are not suitable to be landfilled or composted.

Let us be clear…that oxo-biodegradable plastic is not normally marketed for composting, and it is not designed for anaerobic digestion nor for degradation deep in landfill…

Rather, Dr. Scott claims that these additives are designed to lessen the impact of plastics that are littered. You can read the complete article from bipoplastics magazine here.

This is something of a retreat on the part of leaders of the ‘oxo’ industry. Unfortunately, while Dr. Scott claims that ‘oxo-degradables’ are not marketed as compostable or biodegradable in landfills, this direction has not filtered down to the wide array of additive suppliers, who routinely make extravagant green marketing claims for products based on oxo-degradable additives. Check out this sample: a simple Google search of the combination “oxo-biodegradable + landfilling“.

Now that the oxo-biodegradable industry leaders have begun to pinpoint where they believe that their additives have value, it is up to them to make the data available to address the following questions:

1. How long will it take (and under what conditions) for products using these additives to fragment, which is a precursor to the possibility of any biodegradation?
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2. How long will it take for these applications to fully biodegrade (as claimed) in the environment? Available data shows that the process will take years, even under optimal conditions and high temperatures (as are found in composting).

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3. What are the environmental impacts of the “plastic fragments” that are created? Are the impacts from plastic fragments with ‘oxo-additives’ any different than those from ordinary plastic fragments that are already been documented?
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We applaud Dr. Scott in providing a clearer direction to this industry. We look forward to seeing his research to answer the questions that will continue to follow this industry.

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Market Survey on VDP (variable data print) on fiber-based packaging

Marcus Rehberger, a PhD Student at the Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm (KTH) is carrying out a market study about Variable Data Print (VDP) on fiber based packaging. The aim of this project is, to evaluate the practicability and how to achieve variable data printing in high quality at high speed. This variable data could consist of regional or seasonal contents, local languages, bar codes or anything else that could be customized on packaging.

For more information about the project, visit his Blog

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Or this link to get directly to the Questionnaire (max. 16 question and it will take about 15 minutes to answer them)

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Bioplastics News: Sustainable Packaging, Market and Label

Green Factor Enables Positive Momentum for Biodegradable Plastics Market

As biodegradable plastics fall under the "green" category, they exhibit high potential for growth compared to other thriving environment-friendly technologies in the renewable energy and chemicals segments. Opportunities are proliferating in key application areas such as packaging/plastic bags, agriculture, consumer goods, electronics, automotive, and healthcare. Growth in this sector occurs due to factors such as climate change, favorable governmental measures, and green procurement policies practiced by governments as well as corporate entities. Stringent environmental regulations are driving the development of bio-based products and triggering the growth of the biodegradable plastics industry.

New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Biodegradable Plastics--A Strategic Assessment of Technology Status and Application Prospects, finds that consumer products and packaging has emerged as the application sectors having the highest potential for biodegradable plastics. Analysis revealed that film packaging and rigid packaging scored the best in terms of level of attractiveness and possibility of success.

Environmental label to be applied to shopping bags

Novamont SpA, a company in the field of bioplastics, has decided to apply the AssoSCAI Environmental Label to publicize the characteristics of the Second Generation Mater-Bi® used in its shopping bags.

The label clearly states information both on the biological origin (quantity of renewable biological raw materials) and on its biodegradability and compostability. It also carries information on recyclability (to reduce the possibility of cross-contamination with other non-biodegradable polymers), as well as the possibility of energy saving by incineration.

The consumer is thus informed of the real significance of the term “bioplastic”, with the explicit declaration of the fundamental characteristics which justify the use of the prefix “bio-”.

Sustainable packaging market to reach $170 billion by 2014

Packaging for a variety of consumer, commercial, and industrial goods continues to grow rapidly, fueled largely by the increase in demand for consumer goods in developing countries. According to a recent report from Pike Research, worldwide packaging industry revenues will increase from $429 billion in 2009 to $530 billion by 2014, representing a growth rate greater than that of the global economy itself.

Along with this growth comes an ever-greater burden on the environment in the form of raw materials, energy, transportation, and disposal impacts. However, Pike Research forecasts that the sustainable packaging sector is growing much faster than the overall packaging industry, and the cleantech market intelligence firm anticipates that eco-friendly packaging will nearly double in revenues between 2009 and 2014, from $88 billion to $170 billion.

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The Top Ten Reasons Stand Up Pouches Can Make Your Profits Stand At Attention

While stand up pouches may not be completely new to the packaging market, they have revolutionized the packaging industry in such a way as to warrant quite a bit of attention. Yet despite their success, there are still those manufacturers who are using old packaging methods to market their products, and they are completely missing out on an opportunity to save enormous amounts of resources, simply through the use of stand up pouches. The pouches are especially useful for manufacturers of items like pet food, chemicals, or foodstuffs like soup. Here is a brief list of reasons why stand up pouches are the answer to your packaging needs:

1. Stand up pouches look great on store shelves because they offer a lot of room for graphics and important instructional information.

2. The composition of stand up pouches takes very well to printing and can serve as a virtual billboard for your product on a store shelf. They can be printed with any number of designs and colors – you are only limited by your imagination.

3. Stand up pouches use a lot less material in housing an item than more traditional packaging methods like a bag-in-a-box, glass, metal, or rigid plastic containers. As a result, both manufacturers and end users have less to throw away.

4. Because they can stand on their own, the merchandising options available to a product in a stand up pouch are far greater than other items.

5. Stand up pouches are available in any number of styles and with multiple different access methods, such as: reclosable zippers, spouts, sliders, or stickers.

6. Made of plastic or a combination of plastic and aluminum laminates, stand up pouches offer excellent protection from outside physical or chemical contaminants, and can improve the freshness of products that break down once exposed to oxygen.

7. Stand up pouches fold flat when empty, saving space during shipment and storage, and saving money on freight costs.

8. Extremely easy to use, most consumers rarely have trouble opening or closing a stand up pouch, which is extremely appealing to both retailers and end users alike.

9. Stand up pouches come in a variety of shapes and sizes. The most common shapes are the round-bottom, the k-seal, and the plow bottom. Which you use depends on your product and your preference. Your supplier can make recommendations based on your specific needs.

10. Both dry and liquid products can be housed in stand up pouches, as they are manufactured in such a way as to minimize the risk of the package leaking or breaking, no matter how much stress they are subjected to

In closing, stand up pouches can be used for both industrial and retail applications. Having a product stand on a shelf with easy access to the contents inside definitely favors the retail environment as well as the end user. Together with the large printable surface for maximum consumer appeal, it is clear why this type of packaging continues to grow in popularity.
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Bioplastics News: Booming, The 8 Percent Solution, PHA and sweet green

Are booming bioplastics here to stay?

So far, bioplastics only comprise an estimated 0.20 percent to 0.25 percent of total plastics use. But several forecasts predict a boom for the once-brittle plastics that are now beginning to compete with traditional PET and polystyrene.

A recent University of Utrecht study forecast that up to 90 percent of plastics could technically become bio-based in the long term and that production could grow by on average 37 percent annually until 2013. Ceresana Research predicts the largest growth rates in electronics and auto industries. The Freedonia Group, an industrial research company, sees demand growing fastest in the Asia-Pacific region, and some predict the U.S. market to reach $10 billion a year by 2020, a tenfold increase from 2007.

Both Natureworks and Metabolix companies see the future in cellulosics such as grasses and non-edible plant parts. "Crops like sugar cane and switchgrass have the potential to grow in acres where crops can't be grown or those grown are of marginal value," Peoples said. "It really allows you to produce bio-based, bio-degradeable materials from agriculture without impacting food."
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Even at competitive cost, bioplastics companies must persuade critics and those confused about how environmentally friendly the different kinds of bio-plastics really are. Lack of composting facilities could push bioplastics into landfills, where certain types would release more damaging methane than traditional PET plastics. Worries that bio-plastics could contaminate the PET recycling stream has some retailers hesitating.
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Market growth, stricter government standards for plastics and limits on land filling are encouraging more research into improvements and solutions, but bio-plastics will not be a miracle cure in an "either-or" scenario with oil-based plastics, producers and experts say.
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Bioplastic: The 8 Percent Solution

The future of plastics once fossil fuels run dry or the price for it becomes too expensive is bioplastics.

But that alternative future is distant, measured in terms of decades, says Frederic Scheer, chairman, president and founder of Cereplast Inc., a Hawthorne, CA, company that designs and manufactures bio-based, sustainable plastics.

Scheer may be a visionary and a pioneer when it comes to bioplastics, but he’s also realistic about the challenge and the effort it will take to penetrate and begin to replace the traditional plastic market. The biggest bioplastics inroads will occur first in packaging and foodservice markets, Scheer says.

And bioplastic was not on anyone’s agenda at COP15, says Scheer. “They don’t realize that bioplastics are part of the solution.” About an 8 percent solution, because fossil fuel byproducts comprise 8 percent of fossil fuel consumption, Scheer notes.

It’s “sad but true that people are environmentally conscious when it’s convenient and affordable,” Scheer admits.

That’s yet another aspect of the insidious addiction to oil: A worthy emerging alternative to fossil fuel byproducts is captive to the price of oil and won’t really take off until the price surges and remains at a high level. Does anyone believe the oil majors will let that happen?

PHA from waste, agricultural byproducts and petrochemical products

A University College Dublin research team recently patented a process to produce biodegradable plastic from plastic bottles, and that patent has led to the formation of a company, Bioplastech Ltd., to develop, process and market the technology.

Dr. Kevin O’Connor, founder and CEO of Bioplastech, led the team and the biodegradable plastic they produce is called polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA).

The Ireland-based Bioplastech converts waste, agricultural byproducts and petrochemical products into PHA, a linear polyester produced by bacterial fermentation of sugar or lipids that can store carbon and energy.

The company, which was formed last year and employs 10 people, is also looking at waste food oils and biodiesel.

Sweet green promise of sugar

Sugar-based chemical feedstock seems to be prominently featured in 2009 as several developments continue to center on the promise of sugar as alternative to petroleum.

A major product is bioplastic such as bio-polyethylene made from sugarcane-based ethylene. Brazilian chemical company Braskem is a prominent developer in this area. Braskem also recently announced its development partnership with enzyme company Novozymes for bio-propylene using sugar-cane as feedstock.
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