In the previous video Patrick Gerritsen discussed some of the opportunities of renewable materials for packaging. In the following video he explains some of the challenges that Bio4Pack has to deal with in order to realise their ambitions.

MAIN TAKEAWAYS

• Bio4Pack is able to provide renewable and compostable alternatives for about 80% of all packaging types. The limitations that remain depend largely on the barrier properties that the packaging requires. Specific challenges include vacuum bags and cling film.
• Other disadvantages are the maximum shelf life of certain biobased packaging items (after a certain time the material will start to degrade) and their price compared to conventional alternatives.
• Legislation also poses a problem: in the Netherlands, compostable packaging may generally not be disposed of in bio-bins, because composters worry that consumers are unable to tell the difference between conventional and compostable packaging (and thus contaminate that waste stream with non-compostable plastics).
• Bioplastics such as PLA could be recycled like conventional plastics, but because they are currently used in relatively small volumes, it is not economically viable to do so.