BASF compostable polymer production set to increase

BASF and Red Avenue New Materials Group have signed a joint agreement, granting Red Avenue New Materials Group the licence to produce and sell certified compostable aliphatic-aromatic co-polyester (PBAT), according to high BASF quality standards. For this purpose, Red Avenue New Materials Group will build a 60,000-metric tonne PBAT plant in Shanghai, using BASF’s process technology in exchange for the access to raw material from this plant, which BASF will sell as ecoflex. Production at the plant will commence in 2022 and supply the market of biopolymers.

The global market for certified compostable and bio-based plastics is forecast to grow by around 15% per year as many countries enforce the use of compostable materials in packaging.

“Our successful bio-polyester ecoflex and the innovative ecovio are already giving us significant participation in this growing market. The additional available PBAT capacities will strengthen our position,” said Olivier Ubrich, head of BASF’s global business unit, Specialty Polymers.

The BASF biopolymer ecoflex was introduced into the market in 1998 and is certified compostable in accordance with DIN EN 13432 and ASTM D6400. It is used as a blend with other renewable raw materials to compound ecovio, BASF’s certified compostable biopolymer.

The renewable raw material content means that ecovio is also partly bio-based and can be used for some food packaging applications.

Image credit: BASF 2020.