A revolution in packaging comes of age

NatureWorks LLC to showcase the new face of packaging with NatureWorks® biopolymer innovations at FachPack 2007

NUREMBERG, Deutschland, September 25, 2007  --  Natural Plastic! - What was once just a great idea is now a real commercial presence across a whole range of industry sectors. Natural plastic is a reality.

NatureWorks LLC is dedicated to real and lasting sustainable and environmental product development based on its unique technology and is the only commercial scale natural plastic manufacturer of alternatives to oil based plastics available in the world today. Replacing many oil-based products with NatureWorks, a natural plastic based on annually renewable plant sugars, is a simple and easy answer to a variety of packaging and product solutions.

Not only is the raw material resource sustainable, but the manufacture of the polymer uses less more than 60% less fossil fuel in production and emits 80 – 90% less green house gases than conventional plastics, making it one of the greenest polymers produced in the world today.

In addition, NatureWorks biopolymer offers excellent clarity and performance attributes that are comparable to what consumers have come to expect from their packaging today...

From concept to market introduction and commercial presence, NatureWorks LLC has been able to do this thanks to the commitment of commercial partners working with NatureWorks biopolymer.

NatureWorks is sold in pellet form to a large and inventive converter base that makes unique components for brands and retailers. In addition, NatureWorks biopolymer is used by a broad converter base to produce Ingeo™ fibers, fueling innovations in apparel, nonwovens and the home.

This breadth of activity has produced a wide product line which is currently being marketed by more than 100 brands and retailers selling in over 70.000 stores worldwide. The more than 20 different NatureWorks based lifestyle product applications include eco-food packaging, water and juice bottles, disposable serviceware, protective packaging and casings designed for personal care cosmetics. These sell alongside Ingeo-based products which include t-shirts, socks, pillows, bedding, baby wipes, diapers & hygiene products.

NatureWorks LLC is hosting a Creative Gallery at FachPack 2007 which demonstrates NatureWorks commercial presence today. This Creative gallery showcases commercial packaging solutions such as ice cream cups from Alcas, water bottles from Belu, cosmetic designs from Cargo Cosmetics, cups from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, food containers from Marks&Spencer and Priméale, and packaging for Sony® Walkman appliances as well as many other Ingeo innovations in the textile and nonwovens based sectors such as T shirts, hosiery, bedding, and diapers.

Choosing to work with NatureWorks biopolymer means more than just choosing one plastic over another. It’s about understanding that there is a critical mass of new consumers who are already looking for more responsible products in their everyday lives. NatureWorks LLC has tapped into the zeitgeist of consumer desires with its invention of this new biopolymer. Our partners have given voice to what was once just an idea. That idea is now a reality that brings a new meaning of how to do business differently today. To make contemporary products with a natural origin, to bring performance without compromise and to make products that have a powerful environmental message to the consumer who is looking for a means to choose better.

NatureWorks LLC. Making products for you to choose better. Better for business, better for the consumer and better for the planet.

About NatureWorks LLC
NatureWorks LLC is a stand-alone company wholly owned by Cargill. Dedicated to meeting the world’s needs today without compromising the earth’s ability to meet the needs of tomorrow, NatureWorks LLC is the first company to offer a family of commercially available low carbon footprint biopolymers derived from 100 percent annually renewable resources with cost and performance that compete with oil-based packaging materials and fibers. The company applies its unique technology to the processing of natural plant sugars to create a proprietary polylactide biopolymer, which is marketed under the Ingeo® fibers brand name.

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Ingeo and the Ingeo logo are trademarks of NatureWorks LLC.
Sony is a registered trademark of Sony is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation.