Kaneka Americas opens division focused on biodegradable polymer PHBH
24 Apr 2019 --- Kaneka Americas Holding has created a new Biopolymers Division based in Houston, US. The division will produce Kaneka’s biodegradable polymer PHBH, which is a plant-based product that is touted as offering both flexibility and heat resistance for food-grade packaging applications. It is produced via a novel bio-fermentation process which uses renewable plant oils as feedstock.
Bioplastics are attracting an increasing amount of industry attention, particularly as packaging with sustainability credentials continues to drive consumer purchasing behavior. One in three consumers are willing to pay more for food and beverage products packaged using compostable or biodegradable packaging, a global 2018 lifestyle survey from Innova Market Insights notes. Their growth is particularly salient in Asia, according to data from the market researcher.
The PHBH products are not only bio-based and bio-compostable in aerobic, anaerobic or marine environments, they are also strongly resistant to heat and can act as a barrier to water vapor, the company notes. The grades are touted as being stable under everyday usage conditions, yet given the right conditions, under either anaerobic, aerobic or marine conditions in the natural environment, they will begin to biodegrade.
PHBH has been granted Food Contact Approval by the US Food and Drug Administration and is suitable for all food packaging products, such as cups, cutlery, food trays and plates.
Kaneka has been producing PHBH since 2011 and is currently expanding its facilities in Takasago, Japan. The company hopes to find an alternative solution to the current single-use plastic products as it recognizes the need to bring to market “a plant-based product that will help reduce the ocean and landfill pollution.”
Recent investments in the bioplastic space have been significant. Last month, Sealed Air Corporation increased production of plant-based packaging for food applications. The company is investing in capacity at its Simpsonville, US, facility, which will be the first in the US to produce materials made from Plantic – a bio-based polymer with barrier properties – and post-consumer plastic. Sealed Air’s planned capital investment of US$24 million is underway and production is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2020. To support this work, Japan-based Kuraray America, Inc. (Kuraray), a specialty materials company, is investing approximately US$15 million to install plant-based high barrier resin production and supporting capabilities in Houston, Texas.
Total Corbion – a collaborative venture between Total and Corbion – launched a 75,000 tons per year PLA (polylactic acid) bioplastics manufacturing plant based in Rayong, Thailand in December 2018 The facility produces Luminy PLA resins, a biobased and biodegradable bioplastic that could play in to a circular economy. PLA products can be chemically or mechanically recycled or composted and used as fertilizer.
