Ingeo News: Vol 15, Iss 11

December 2020

EPR Consortium for Organic Recycling of Compostable Packaging Officially Launches in Italy

Biorepack is officially the seventh consortium of the Consorzio Nazionale Imballaggi (Conai) supply chain and will be in charge of end-of-life management of biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging in Italy. Six leading bioplastics producers and processors (Ceplast, Ecozema-Factory Pliers Schio, Ibiplast, Industry Plastic Tuscany, Novamont, and Polycart), who have been working toward this goal since 2018, embody Biorepack and will handle Italy's biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging that can be recycled with the collection of organic waste and transformed, with specific industrial treatment, into compost or biogas.

"We are extremely satisfied - comments Marco Versari, president of Biorepack (as well as of Assobioplastche) - because with the approval of the Statute, the specificity of a material with a very peculiar end of life is recognized compared to that of the others covered by the current six Conai supply chain consortia. Being the first European consortium for the organic recycling of bioplastic packaging means taking an unparalleled step forward in the field of recognizing the value of organic recycling and allowing our country to strengthen its leadership in the circular bioeconomy sector." Read the full article.

Ingeo Innovation Receives 2020 RISE Conference Innovation Award from INDA Nonwovens

A new bicomponent spunbond material that can serve as an effective N95 face mask filter – without the need for a meltblown filtration layer – has been developed by The Nonwovens Institute with partner, NatureWorks. This Ingeo innovation has already received the 2020 RISE conference Innovation Award from INDA - Association of the Nonwoven Fabric Industry. Read More.                        



Certifications Matter More than Ever and Brands Should be Promoting Them

Suzane Shelton recently wrote for Greenbiz about how Americans are experiencing a "Maslow moment" right now. Concerns about the environment are taking a backseat to worries about basic needs — our health and our economy (at both the macro and personal level). But that doesn’t mean we’re not at all worried about the environment. According to our latest polling of Americans in May, 43 percent of us are more concerned about climate change, 41 percent of us are more concerned about plastics in the ocean and 39 percent of us are more concerned about deforestation and environmental destruction than we were a year ago. Read the full article.


IC3D's Third Annual 3D Printed Toys for Tots Campaign Surpasses 15K Print Goal

The 3rd annual IC3D Printers Toys for Tots Ohio campaign has already been successful and this year NatureWorks proudly donated Ingeo resin to their efforts. Just recently, "printer elves" in the 3D printing community across several states have surpassed their goal of 15,000 printed toys for donation.
"One goal for this was not only to give the gift of a toy to a child. But, it is to inspire curiosity, develop organic interest in manufacturing, and experiment with Distributed Manufacturing." - Michael Cao, IC3D Founder & CEO. Read about IC3D Toys for Tots Campaign.

PARTNER UPDATES

Food Serviceware

BioPak
BioPak are recipients of the first round of grants under the Morrison Government's National Product Stewardship Investment Fund from the Australian Government and are tasked to grow the national composting infrastructure for the foodservice industry, ultimately supporting the circular economy and instigating wide-spread change! Read more.
BioPak has also recently been named innovative packaging solution #138 in Ellen MacArthur Foundation's global Upstream Innovation Guide, a new comprehensive toolkit to achieve a circular economy for plastic packaging. The guide is available electronically in five languages, along with an interactive searchable database of all of the innovations profiled in the guide.
Read more here.



Fabri-Kal
Fabri-Kal is celebrating 70 years since its start in 1950 by a 27-year old named Robert P. “Kit” Kittredge in an old A&P grocery store. Lately Fabri-Kal has contributed to the recent BPI “Guidelines for the Labeling of Compostable Products and Packaging” and their brand of compostable serviceware made with Ingeo called Greenware is going strong.

Vegware
Vegware's London and Brighton recycling service for compostables with BPR Group Europe Ltd is featured in Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s new Upstream Innovation guide. Upstream innovation is about preventing waste from being created in the first place, and Vegware believes they must move beyond just focusing on incremental packaging improvements and more toward fundamentally rethinking how to best deliver products and services to a user.

Filtration

PG Tips
Unilever's PG Tips company is featured in the Ellen MacArthur's Upstream Innovation guide for their "rethinking packaging" rollout of plant-based, compostable tea bags. Read more about what makes PG Tips sustainable here.


3D Printing

Polymaker
Polymaker is hosting an ongoing 3D Printed Hook Tournament and they invited the 3D printing community to show off their engineering skills to design the strongest hook. In the competition rounds, the strength of Polymax® PLA, made with Ingeo, is demonstrated as hooks will face each other in a tensile strength contest until one of them breaks or relinquishes. Subscribe to the Polymaker YouTube channel to view the rounds! And here are the current tournament standings.  


NATUREWORKS & INDUSTRY NEWS

RECENT EVENTS

PG Tips
Unilever's PG Tips company is featured in the Ellen MacArthur's Upstream Innovation guide for their "rethinking packaging" rollout of plant-based, compostable tea bags. Read more about what makes PG Tips sustainable here.


Plastic Free World Summit | November 9 | Virtual
NatureWorks' Sustainability Manager, Erwin Vink, discussed where Ingeo fits within the circular economy and its low-carbon footprint as confirmed by Life Cycle Analysis in two presentations at this year's Plastic Free World.                                        
                 

European Bioplastics Conference | November 30 - December 3 | Virtual
NatureWorks' EU Business Development Manager, Eamonn Tighe, shared how advancements in Ingeo for fibers and nonwovens have been driving new filtration applications like the new N95 face mask filter we developed with the Nonwovens Institute.
                                    
                 

We're Growing!

Join a fast-growing, ever-evolving team of professionals. Join NatureWorks!

Available Job Opportunities:

Marketing Content Specialist | Minnetonka, MN
Responsibilities include bringing together words, images, and data into compelling stories that help us drive the adoption of the bio-materials we make from renewable resources. Candidate will own aspects the content process from writing high-quality copy to facilitating data visualization to directing photo shoots to best capture the value proposition of a product. If you’re an experienced writer who aspires to grow within the world’s leading bio-materials company, have a flair for translating highly technical content to broader audiences, and a desire to tell compelling stories, we want you as our Marketing Content Specialist.

Office Support Intern | Blair, NE
The Office Intern will assist with administrative and clerical task for the operations, maintenance, and engineering projects.

Responsibilities: 
  • Assist with administrative and clerical task for the operations, maintenance, and engineering projects.
  • Update site safety communication board
  • Update, scan, copy, and file information into the equipment library
  • Organize and communicate weekly safety drawing
  • Other duties as assigned by administrative assistant

Keep up with ALL of our available job opportunities on our Careers page.