Consultation: UK Environmental Agency to revise standard rules sets for biowaste treatment

On 21 October, the British Evironmental Agency (EA) initiated an official consultation for the revision of standard rules sets for biowaste treatment. In this regard new consultation guidelines were published. The emphasis of the consultation lies on the reduction of plastic packaging contamination in anaerobic digestion and composting. According to EA, plastic contamination has reduced market confidence in using compost and digestate for agriculture. Therefore, among other things, a significant reduction of the current contamination rate of around five percent weight/weight (w/w) to 0.5 percent w/w is considered. Compostable and biodegradable plastic will be permitted only if the packaging complies with EN 13432 or other recognised compostable packaging standards/certifications. The consultation will be open until 13 January 2020.

To read guidelines click here

Bioplastics: Where are we now?

Innovation in bioplastics development continues apace, but there is still much more to be done and many challenges to be overcome if we are to see their more widespread adoption. We talked to Stefano Facco from Novamont and others to gain their insights into the state of the industry and where it is headed. The conversation around biolastics is a complex one, and there are varying options as to their merits and drawbacks. They have been around on the market for over 20 years but their high costs and relatively low comercial value has in the past meant they have been low-volume, niche materials. According to the most recent data release by European Bioplastics in collaboration with the nova-institute, the global production capacities of bioplastics have been predicted to grow from around 2.11 million tons in 2018 to approximately 2.62 million tons by 2023. “The market is indeed growing in a healthy way“, says Stefano Facco, new business development director at Novamont. “Bioplastics have well demonstrated worldwide their benefit when organic recycling is adopted.”

To read complete article in Packaging Europe, Volume 14.7 – 2019 click here

PepsiCo issues $1billion ‘Green Bond’ to fund sustainability projects

PepsiCo is issuing around $1 billion worth of ‘Green Bonds’ to investors, claiming that it will use the proceeds of the bond sale to fund sustainability initiatives in areas such as packaging and transport. This is the first green bond that the company has issued, and PepsiCo has announced that it plans to invest the proceeds to “advance its sustainability agenda”, in line with sustainability commitments already announced by the company. According to a statement from the company, this will include an increase in funding to aid the development of packaging such as bio-based PET bottles and compostable and biodegradable snack films. The company claims that the funding will also enhance its efforts to make its supply chain more sustainable, increasing its ability to fund projects that improve energy efficiency, allow it to replace fossil fuel-powered cars with electric vehicles, and train farmers on ways to improve soil health.

To read complete article click here