“Making these pre‐marketing resins available in the USA will accelerate market acceptance of PLA and will allow Corbion to gain a deeper insight into the various product‐market combinations”, states Derek Atkinson, Senior Business Director for the Americas. “Many customers have expressed a need for a credible and high quality 2nd source of PLA resins”, Atkinson continues.
Corbion is one of the global market leaders in lactic acid, lactic acid derivatives and lactides, and one of the leading companies in emulsifiers, functional enzyme blends, minerals and vitamins.
The company delivers high performance bio-based products made from renewable resources and applied in global markets such as bakery, meat, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, home and personal care, packaging, automotive and coatings.
Corbion operates 11 production plants, in the USA, the Netherlands, Spain, Brazil and Thailand, and markets its products through a worldwide network of sales offices and distributors. In 2015, Corbion generated annual sales of € 918.3 million and had a workforce of 1,673 employees.
As part of its strategy ‘Disciplined Value Creation’, announced on 30 October 2014, Corbion is accelerating its thrust into the biotechnology arena, making the next step in the bioplastics value chain by becoming a PLA producer.
Corbion’s PLA portfolio for the Americas markets includes a range of high heat, high performance PLLA and PDLA homopolymer resins, specifically targeted at those applications where durability and/or high heat resistance are key requirements.
More on these demanding application can be found in § 14 – PLA high heat resistant food packaging innovations eg the coffee capsules case study – via European Bioplastics Conference Day 1 (Nov 5)
Furthermore, various standard PLA grades for use in injection moulding, film and sheet extrusion, thermoforming and fiber spinning complement Corbion’s PLA range, ideally suited to packaging and disposable as well as durable applications.
In order to service customers in a timely manner, Corbion has set up a local warehouse on the US continent to ensure short delivery times.
Additionally to PLA, Corbion is developing100% bio-based FDCA for high performance PEF (Polyethylene Furanoate) resin. PEF can, for example, be used for bottle and film applications due to its excellent O2, CO2 and water barrier properties.
RELATED ARTICLES
- What are Bioplastics and Biopolymers?
- Bioplastics Brands
- Bioplastics Awards
- What is the Difference Between Biodegradable, Compostable and OXO Degradable?
- The History and Most Important Innovations of Bioplastics
- What are Drop-In Bioplastics?
- History of Cellophane
- The History of Elephant Grass Bioplastics
- Bioplastics Companies
- Top Bioplastics Producers
- Polylactic acid or polylactide (PLA)
- What is Bio-BDO?
- McDonalds and the Polystyrene Connections
- The Future of Polystyrene
- Bioplastic Feedstock 1st, 2nd and 3rd Generations