investment viewpoints
Plastic wrap: polymer-munching microbes, AI-enhanced sorting
In this issue of our bimonthly review of the drive to circularity in the plastics value chain, we cover the commercialisation of a new plastic-eating microbe, Indonesia’s investment in marine plastics reduction, and key fundings for startup and scale-up solutions. Major companies’ reversal of plastic-waste reduction and lawyers’ anticipation of ‘forever chemical’ lawsuits also feature.
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In the sections below, we cover the latest science, policy and corporate activity advancing plastic circularity. Click on each to explore.
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Science and reports
Microbe discovery
With polymers taking centuries to decompose naturally, an estimated two-thirds of all plastics ever produced remains in the environment. However, a microbe dubbed X-32, recently discovered in a Harvard lab, can break down the chemical bonds in all major types of plastic waste in a matter of days, leaving only water, CO2 and biomass. A new startup, Breaking, is now turning the discovery into a commercial service that can clean up plastic pollution.
Environmental report
A new report by The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) aims to help governments shift the burden of plastic recycling onto producers. The publication, “Making Plastic Polluters Pay: How Cities and States Can Recoup the Rising Costs of Plastic Pollution”, explains the wide-ranging impacts of plastics pollution, the burden on US states and municipalities, why manufacturers are responsible, and how government lawyers can hold the plastics industry accountable for the harm it causes.
Sorting technologies
Polysecure, a German firm specialising in technology for marking and detecting materials, has collaborated with Pforzheim University to develop Sort4Circle: a solution aiming to quickly and accurately identify individual plastic packaging items used in a range of industries and sort them into groups for recycling. It deploys a sorting method patented by Polysecure that uses fluorescent additives to identify materials. Simultaneously, their types and characteristics are recorded through near-infrared technology, enabling sorting into recycling streams with higher targeted accuracy.
The firm will build the pilot plant with funding from the Baden-Württemberg government and economic, technical and ecological data for the recycling of plastic flows from Pforzheim University. The consortium is also carrying out a nation-wide collection and sorting study to analyse the nature and quantity of plastic waste being generated, which will help further develop the Sort4Circle process.
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Policy, regulation and disclosure
Indonesia boosts marine-plastic reduction
The Asian Development Bank has approved a $500 mn loan to support and improve the Indonesian government’s National Action Plan for Handling Marine Debris. Initiated in 2018, the Plan committed to a 70% reduction in plastic marine debris by 2025 through better solid waste collection, processing, recycling, and reuse. A creditable 35% reduction by the end of 2022 demonstrated healthy progress, but also the need for further measures to achieve the desired target. The programme is being developed under the Bank’s Blue Southeast Asia Finance Hub and will support the action plan by improving plastic-waste management, reducing problematic plastic production and consumption, and strengthening data and monitoring tools for policy making.
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Corporate activity
Veolia unveils AI-driven robotics arm for recycling
Leading UK resource-management firm Veolia1 has unveiled an innovative robotic arm designed to increase recycling at its Integrated Waste Management Facility in Southwark, London. The arm uses artificial intelligence (AI) to pick out paper, card, mixed plastics and drink cartons containing aluminium layers from pure aluminium items suitable for recycling. As well as onboard AI, the robot features a camera, six-axis robotic arm, pneumatics system and silicon gripper, which help enable it to remove up to 35-50 items per minute. The arm will be used to support frontline staff in improving the quantity and quality of material recycled.
US Plastic Pact members move reduction goals back to 2030
The US Plastic Pact, whose 80 corporate signatories include Coca-Cola, Nestlê and Danone1, has pushed back its 2025 plastic reduction goals (set in 2020) to 2030. Targets that will no longer be met in 2025 include: eliminating plastic tableware and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemicals (see more on PFAS below), ensuring the reusability, recyclability or compostability of packaging, achieving 50% plastic recycling, and integrating recycled or responsibly sourced bio-based materials into 30% of packaging. The group admits the goals were ambitious, but points to the absence of effective federal policy as a key obstacle to progress.
Amazon1 eliminates single-use plastics in North American deliveries
Amazon has replaced 95% of single-use plastic air pillows in its delivery boxes in North America with recycled paper and aims for a full switch by the start of the 2024 holiday retail season. The move follows a similar elimination process in Europe and will eliminate an estimated 15 billion plastic cushions annually. As well as being more readily recyclable by consumers, the paper is better at absorbing impacts, according to Stress Engineering1, which helped the online retailer make the switch. Approximately 40% of Amazon orders are shipped in delivery boxes.
Lawyers prepare for major ‘forever chemicals’ lawsuits
Industry lawyers are preparing for a huge wave of class action lawsuits against producers and industrial users of so-called ‘forever chemicals’, according to a recent article in The New York Times. The lawsuits relating to PFAS, a class of nearly 15,000 versatile synthetic chemicals linked to serious health problems, could affect a wide swathe of the chemicals, plastics and related industries, dwarfing past asbestos-related litigation. Lawsuits have already targeted DuPont, its spinoff Chemours, and 3M1, which last year agreed to pay at least USD 10 bn to US water utilities seeking compensation for cleanup costs.
Partnership for renewable chemicals and plastics in JapanuNeste1, a producer of sustainable fuels and renewable feedstock for chemicals and industry uses, and the conglomerate Mitsubishi Corporation1 have formed a partnership to create value chains for renewable chemicals and plastics for Japanese brands across industries like food, beverages, apparel and consumer electronics. The initiative aims to help companies diminish fossil-fuel usage in supply chains and reduce plastics-related greenhouse gas emissions. It builds on previous collaborations by the firms, such as renewable PET bottles for Suntory and bio-based polyester for The North Face.
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Deals and investments
Vanagon Ventures invests in LoopID
Munich-based green tech venture capital fund Vanagon Ventures has announced its investment in LoopID, a developer of digital circularity solutions like digital product passports. LoopID’s customisable processes and tools enable brands in the fashion, electronics, furniture and real estate sectors to develop sustainable, compliant business models ready for the growing circular economy.
BASF1 backs chemistry startup Heartland
Chemicals multinational BASF has invested in Detroit-based startup Heartland, through its business incubator Chemovator’s Elevate programme for early-stage chemistry startups. Heartland uses hemp-based fibres sourced from local farmers to replace chemical additives in plastic and rubber products, reducing their carbon footprint and improving properties associated with flammability, bonding and bulk density. The firm’s process micronises fibres to enable them to be completely encapsulated, then adds them to olefins to create a polymer resin with the necessary strength, impact and moisture uptake specifications.
Covestro1 buys major shareholding in BioBTX
German polymer manufacturer Covestro has become a shareholder and strategic partner for Dutch recycling venture BioBTX. Covestro’s investment will enable the construction of a demonstration plant to recycle biowaste and mixed plastic waste into chemicals including benzene, toluene and xylene, aromatics used to produce plastic and other products. Alongside money from Invest-NL and Infinity Recycling, Covestro’s multi-million-EUR investment will see the plant, capable of processing 20,000 tonnes of waste per year, commissioned in 2027.
Circular textile firm Renewcell’s1 renewal
Cotton textile recycling company Renewcell has been rescued from bankruptcy by Swedish private equity firm Altor. The company’s name will be changed to the name of its main product, Circulose, which is an upcycled textile made from cast-off cotton clothing scraps. Recycling old cotton into quality garments presents a challenge because the threads tend to be too short, however, prior to its bankruptcy in February, Renewcell had been used in new clothing by brands including Levi’s, Tommy Hilfiger1, Calvin Klein and Zara, while the firm had an agreement with H&M for the purchase of 18,000 tonnes of the product between 2024 and 2025.
Polystyvert secures CAD 16 million in funding
Montreal-based plastics recycling startup Polystyvert has successfully closed the first tranche of a Series B funding round, raising CAD 16 mn of a total of up to the CAD 30 mn it aims to secure across two tranches. The firm has ambitions for the global deployment of its patented technology for the dissolution and purification of polystyrene and ABS plastic, which enables the recycling of even highly contaminated waste. Polystyvert will use the money raised to construct its first commercial plant, in Quebec, Canada.
Vytal raises more than EUR 6 mn to fuel growth
Vytal Global GmbH, a German provider of software-enabled reusable packaging solutions, has secured more than EUR 6 mn through a funding round led by sustainable industrial innovation specialists Emerald Technology Ventures. Existing investors including Grazia Equity, Kiko Ventures, and Rubio also reinforced their commitment by contributing further growth capital. Vytal will use the money to expand into new markets including the event and entertainment industry, and to further develop its operating system, which digitises the circular value chain for reusable packaging.
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