DuPont Biomaterials: Some bioplastics outperform fossil-based plastics, but prices remain higher

22 Apr 2021 --- The Rethinking Materials virtual summit (May 19-20) will present new opportunities for partnerships and investment in the changing landscape of plastics, bio-based alternatives and circular solutions. One big name participant is biotechnology pioneer DuPont Biomaterials. 

In this exclusive interview, PackagingInsights speaks to DuPont’s Renee Henze, director of global marketing and commercial development for bio-based materials and Dr. Michael Saltzberg, global business director for biomaterials, about the summit, bio-based innovation, waste management strategies, COVID-19 impacts and more.

DuPont is responsible for some of the key developments in modern biotechnology, notably the commercialization of BioPDO with its partner Tate & Lyle in 2006. The US company continues to invest in bio-based R&D, utilizing biotechnology and chemistry to produce high-performance materials from renewable feedstocks.

What is DuPont Biomaterials’ role at the upcoming Rethinking Materials virtual summit?
Henze: Our business director, Dr. Michael Saltzberg, will participate on a panel entitled “Enhancing Performance: Designing Sustainable Materials to Outperform the Competition.” We’ll also be hosting two roundtable discussions: One is focused on “Navigating the Valley of Death from Lab to Production,” where we focus on overcoming the challenges faced when taking ideas from the lab to commercialization. The second is “Ensuring Performance for Biosynthetics in Textiles.”

What message will you be looking to put across to attendees?
Henze: If there is one message we would want attendees to take away from our presentations and participation, it would be that we are committed to driving higher performing, sustainable materials innovation to the global marketplace, focused on partnerships with forward-thinkers to promote the new bio-economy.DuPont’s Renee Henze (left), director of global marketing and commercial development for bio-based materials and Dr. Michael Saltzberg, global business director for biomaterials.

In what ways is DuPont Biomaterials helping integrate bio-based materials into existing supply chains?
Henze: We’re dedicated to finding ways to enhance the quality of life through high-performance and competitively priced materials while progressively reducing the environmental impacts of industry. Our goal is to be an important part of the circular economy, one in which products are made to be made again, where the system is powered by renewable energy, and where the process is responsible and restorative.

As it relates to specific bio-based materials, our product offerings include Sorona bio-based polymer for use in apparel and carpet applications. Susterra propanediol, which is 100 percent plant-based, petroleum-free diol and used as a building block in various applications, from polyurethanes and unsaturated polyester resins to heat-transfer fluids. Lastly, Zemea propanediol, which helps product formulators fulfill their sustainability goals without compromising on quality in various applications, including personal care, home care, pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements and food and flavors.

In addition to supplying bio-based materials, we work closely on application development with our customers and their customers through our value chains to ensure that our materials provide consumer solutions with enhanced performance as well as environmental benefits.

Can bio-based materials compete with conventional plastics on shelf life extension?
Saltzberg: We agree that food packaging is an important and beneficial application for plastics, providing enhanced shelf life and substantially reducing food waste. Some bio-based materials can provide the same or even superior shelf life performance as compared with traditional petro-based materials. For example, DuPont and other companies are developing PEF, a polymer with similar physical properties to PET but greatly superior gas barrier properties. For carbonated beverages, PEF provides a solution to reduce the amount of plastic needed to maintain current shelf life performance or to provide enhanced shelf life.Some bio-based materials can provide superior shelf life performance to petro-based materials, Dr. Michael Saltzberg explains.

What are the main advantages and disadvantages of bio-based materials compared to fossil-based plastics?
Henze: Bio-based plastics are not all created equal. In other words, the performance and price for different types of bio-based plastics vary widely. Some bio-based plastics – like DuPont Sorona – provide enhanced technical performance versus the traditional petro-based materials they replace, while some require performance trade-offs.

In general, petro-based materials are lower cost because the price of oil and natural gas is low due to the maturity of the supply chains and strong government support for fossil fuel producers globally, and, in most countries, suppliers of petro-based materials do not have to recognize the huge environmental costs caused by the end-of-life issues associated with their products. Today, in most but not all cases, petro-based products are less expensive than bio-based alternatives.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, petro-based plastics contribute to introducing more fossil carbon into the ecosystem, closely associated with climate change. By choosing bio-based materials based on renewable feedstocks instead of these products, we can reduce the amount of fossil carbon and help reduce the impact of climate change.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes are increasingly touted as a way to reduce packaging pollution. Do you agree EPRs are effective, and what advice would you give to governments looking to implement or update them?
Saltzberg: We believe in EPRs as an important tool to move the packaging industry (and eventually others) toward responsible package design, waste reduction and circularity. While complexities currently exist to implement them broadly, we support these initiatives and believe our role in enabling companies to achieve these will be important in the future.

Governments must look at the beginning of life as well as the end-of-life of materials when crafting their policies. Today, in many countries, there are large incentives in place to support fossil fuels, and thus the materials made from them and limited or no similar incentives for producers of bio-based materials. Governments can help the adoption of eco-friendly bio-based materials by leveling this playing field.Bio-based plastics are not all created equal as the performance and price can vary widely, Renee Henze illustrates.

Chemical recycling is increasingly seen as a key component of the circular economy for plastics, but some are concerned it’s too energy-intensive. What is your opinion on chemical recycling as a long-term sustainability solution?
Saltzberg: We think that the techno-economic details are critical to answering this question. If chemical recycling can deliver first-quality monomers with a significant overall life-cycle benefit versus the production of virgin fossil-based monomers, we are supportive of it and will seek to use these recycled materials in our products even if there is a reasonable cost premium.

There are some important uncertainties to be resolved around the technology, for example, net energy and water usage through the process. These and other key aspects of the technology must be proven out at scale. In addition, chemical recycling faces the same infrastructure issues as mechanical recycling in terms of the availability of appropriate feedstock and the cost and environmental impact of collecting the waste. All that said, we are excited that innovative companies are working in this area and hopeful that they can be part of driving a more circular economy.

In what ways has COVID-19 affected DuPont Biomaterials, and what long-term packaging and FMCG trends are you discerning due to the pandemic?
Henze: Like so many others, we had the opportunity to pause and evaluate our choices during the pandemic. In many ways, the pandemic reaffirmed our commitment to advocating for biomaterials and leaving our Earth a better place than we found it. It allowed us an opportunity to connect with our customers and understand their needs. We also connected with other members of our industry. We have always done this, but the need for cross-industry collaboration and support feels even more important now. We are seeing increased consumer demand for more sustainable solutions; it is hard to say if this is just a continuation of previous trends or if the pandemic has accelerated consumer concerns about the environment.

By Joshua Poole

Ahead of the Rethinking Materials virtual summit, PackagingInsights also spoke with Hugo Menilo, Unilever’s global foods packaging director and a speaker at the event, to discuss the consumer goods giant’s explorations in bio-based packaging, advanced recycling, refillable e-commerce solutions and more.