Sea-farmed supercrop: how seaweed could transform the way we live From high-protein food to plastics and fuel, Swedish scientists are attempting to tap the marine plant’s huge potential. As we shift to a bio-based rather than fossil-fuel-based economy, seaweed could provide a lot of the compounds we need. For example, Ulrica Edlund, Steinhagen’s collaborator [...]
Swell idea: Bioplastic surf boards gain traction In France, a company is using 3D printing and bio-based materials to bring the surf community a more sustainable experience. Wyve, based in the Basque beach area, is replacing the polystyrene and EPS foam “blanks” that make traditional surfboards buoyant with inner hexagons that trap air. The [...]
Constance Ißbrücker, Head of Environmental Affairs at European Bioplastics e.V. The EU Plastics Strategy presented a vision where innovative materials and alternative feedstocks would ultimately replace fossil resources. In this context, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) was tasked in 2018 by the European Commission to elaborate an appropriate life cycle assessment (LCA)-based method to evaluate the potential environmental [...]
EUBPConf2021: multi stakeholder panel discussion on bioplastics and EU policy After last year’s 100 percent virtual format, the European Bioplastics Conference was finally able to re-open its gates in Berlin and welcomed around 140 participants. The other half of the overall 320 participants attended online. During the different conference sessions and in [...]
Berlin, 6 December 2021 – At the 16th annual European Bioplastics (EUBP) Conference, which took place from 30 November to 1 December in Berlin, industry experts discussed the role of bioplastics within the European Green Deal. The conference discussions confirmed that bioplastics make significant contributions to help achieving the European Union’s ambitious climate goals [...]
Berlin, 30 November 2021 – In June, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission (EC) published its methodology for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) comparing the environmental impact of fossil-based to bio-based feedstocks for plastics production. “Together with other bio-based industries, we support LCAs as a valuable instrument to measure environmental sustainability. Unfortunately, the approach of the JRC in this study lacks important elements that are crucial for a fair, comparative assessment of bio-based and fossil-based plastics. As a result, it clearly favours conventional plastics made from fossil resources”, comments Hasso von Pogrell, Managing Director of European Bioplastics (EUBP). Over the past [...]
Constance Ißbrücker, Head of Environmental Affairs at European Bioplastics e.V. Life cycle assessment (LCA) has evolved to be the preferred tool to assess the environmental sustainability of certain products and materials. Recently it has also been used with great enthusiasm to compare bio-based with fossil-based plastics. It seems to be an easy instrument to draw [...]
15th European Bioplastics Conference goes virtual In response to the on-going Corona pandemic, European Bioplastics (EUBP) decided to make this year’s EUBP Conference a virtual happening. The online format enables us to go new ways in discussing bioplastics. It will focus on the latest innovations as well as on environmental aspects and opportunities for [...]
15th European Bioplastics Conference: call for papers This year’s European Bioplastics Conference will take place on the 1/2 December 2020 at the Trend Hotel Savoyen in Vienna, Austria. The conference’s 15th edition will focus on the latest innovations in bioplastics as well as on environmental aspects and opportunities for growth in the bio-based plastics [...]
There are published standards for life cycle assessments (LCA) that provide guidance on how to compare different polymers fairly with regard to their environmental impacts. However, the rules still leave sufficient room for manoeuvre to specify the methods by which such comparisons are to be carried out. The fact that there is still a [...]
