UPM Biofore Magazine 1-2019

population in applications such as food packaging and health care. Unnecessary use of plastic should be radically reduced. Recycling solutions, too, need urgent attention. But, in addition, plastic must also be produced more sustainably. One solution is UPMBioVerno naphtha, a renewable plastic rawmaterial made from pulp residue. Plant-based innovation Renewable plastic refers to plastic made from plant or other biological material instead of fossil raw

materials. When they degrade, renewable plastics add less carbon to the atmosphere because they simply return carbon that plants have absorbed while growing instead of releasing carbon trapped underground as oil. The carbon in renewable plastic can furthermore be recycled into new plastic or be utilised in the production of renewable energy. Renewable plastic will not solve the waste problem unless efficient recycling systems are introduced, but it goes a long way to addressing the core problem by replacing fossil rawmaterials and thus decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. “We are already producing

renewable UPMBioVerno naphtha, but we are also developing new, entirely fibre-based solutions to replace plastic. All new, sustainable alternatives are welcome in tackling this global problem,” says Maiju Helin , Head of Sustainability and Market Development at UPMBiofuels. UPMBioVerno naphtha can be used as a rawmaterial for producing bio-based plastic, either on its own or mixed with other rawmaterials as a drop-in solution. A growing amount of plastics are also being produced from biowaste sourced from the food industry and sugar cane production. Renewable and biodegradable plastics together represented only 1% of the global plastic market in 2018. It might come as a surprise to some readers, but oil-based plastic can be biodegradable, too.

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DID YOU KNOW?

Approximately 50,000 tonnes of plastic is recycled annually in Finland.

Half of this amount consists of packaging and PET bottles for

which a deposit is paid. The total recycling rate is 16–20%.

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