Only 31% of plastic is currently recycled and plastic packaging still have a deficient end of life. Thus, improvements are needed to provide cost effective solutions with high bio-based contents and suitable performances for demanding packaging applications, with a consumption of 19M ton/year, while still achieving compostability in mild conditions. Using sustainably sourced comonomers, additives and fillers to formulate novel PLA copolymers and compounds, the BIOnTOP project will deliver recyclable-by-design cost competitive packaging solutions that can be mechanically recycled, industrially/home composted or even suitable for anaerobic digestion. Moreover, the barrier properties of delivered bio-packaging trays, films and derived packaging, will be enhanced using removable protein-based coatings and a novel fatty acid grafting technology to decrease permeability and compete with fossil packaging. In the field of textile packaging , most used coatings are not bio-based and of different nature from the coated fibres, making material or organic recycling extremely difficult. New PLA coatings or fatty grafting will allow reprocessing without significant loss of properties. BIOnTOP packaging, based on >85% renewable resources, will be compatible with a broad range of packaging applications’ requirements but also multiple end of Life options. Our materials will be biodegradable in home composting conditions but also recyclable for multiple use secondary packaging. Based on new circular bioeconomy value chains, BIOnTOP will generate growth for EU bioplastics and end users’ industries in the food and personal care sectors with potential in many fields: BIOnTOP production is estimated to reach close to 9.6 Mton per year by 2030, overall leading to €40 M turnover and 170 new jobs. All in all, reducing the environmental footprint of plastics, our new bio-based packaging will have a significant positive social and environmental impact.

Agrochemicals (i.e., fertilizers and pesticides) are responsible for doubling crop yields over the last century. However, they cause multiple negative impacts on environmental and human health. To lessen their effects, the EU aims at reducing by 50% fertilizer losses and use of chemical pesticides by 2030. Controlled polymer-based delivery systems preventing agrochemical losses (e.g., lixiviation, volatilization) and resulting excessive inputs are available. However, they are based on non-biodegradable polymers and generate plastic pollution. Other agricultural plastics (mulch films and growth foams) are used to maintain a prosperous plant environment and prevent agrochemical wash-off, minimizing the quantities to be applied. However, they also result in significant amounts of non-biodegradable plastics being released into environment. PHAntastic tackles the reduction of agrochemicals and plastics pollution using PHAs, a family of bio-based biodegradable polymers. PHAntastic will develop two families of delivery systems (mulch films and growth foams) based on PHAs containing active bioproducts (amino acids & hydrolyzed proteins, microelements, elicitors and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria -PGPR) instead of synthetic agrochemicals. Products will be demonstrated with end users (TRL6) on horticultural crops and trees in Northern and Southern Europe. Experts in the Safe and Sustainable by Design framework will guarantee compliance. Market acceptance will be guaranteed through the development of business cases and exploitation strategies. PHAntastic will contribute to a significant reduction of agrochemicals (minimum 25% in fertilizers, 50% in pesticides, resulting in 23 K tons less of agrochemicals by 2050) and plastic (680 T microplastics less by 2050) in our agricultural systems. PHAntastic will thus contribute to a secure supply chain of food and a less impactful agriculture, boosting the sustainability, autonomy and competitiveness of vital EU value chains.

Approximately one third of all food produced globally is wasted every year throughout the whole value chain-from farmers to consumers. To extract the significant amounts of valuable compounds contained in these wastes, AgriMax will combine affordable and flexible processing technologies (ultrasound assisted and solvent extraction, filtration, thermal and enzymatic treatments) for the valorization of side streams from the horticultural culture and food processing industry to be used in a cooperative approach by local stakeholders. Through the selection of case-scenarios previously developed to a pilot scale by the participating RTOs and their industrial transfer in new applications as food additives, packaging and agricultural materials among others, the project will disclose the holistic potential of four new agro-value chains (residues and by products from the culture and processing of tomato, cereals, olives, potato). Any by-product generated along the production cycle will be valorized in a cascade manner to reach over 40% of high value use of the waste. This will lead to additional production of active ingredients in lower concentration, but also fibres, biogas and fertilizers from the left biomass (the latter with the aim of being used in closed loop in the culture of the crops used in the project to prevent soil impoverishing). An LCA and LCC will also study the best approach to minimize the environmental impact of the new value chains without jeopardizing the cost effectiveness of the operations. The pilot multi-feedstock bio-refinery processes will be validated in two demonstration sites in Spain and Italy. Societal, ethical, safety, techno-feasibility and regulatory aspects will be studied. Last but not least, a business model and platform for communication between the potential raw materials suppliers will be set up to maximize the use of the cooperative treatment plants throughout the year.

Today, fresh food as well as convenience food is sold in packages. Hygienic conditions, long shelf life and easy availability of these packed products account for our standard of living. However, this convenience contributes in a significant way to environmental pollution, as packaging is mainly achieved by plastic materials in this case. Biodegradable packaging materials have been on the market for many decades. However, there are severe restrictions preventing their broad application in food packaging, as these materials do not provide the requested properties, such as a sufficient barrier against water vapour, oxygen or flavours. Our idea is to improve these properties by a biodegradable coating. We have developed high-barrier coatings based on a class of materials with glass-like structural units, so called ORMOCER®s. However, these coatings are not biobased, nor biodegradable. The target of the planned project is the development of new functional hybrid (inorganic-organic) coatings for applications in food, cosmetic & medical device packaging. These new coatings will be based on the work of Fraunhofer ISC who has patented and licensed ORMOCER® lacquers used for coating applications in order to increase barrier properties of packaging films. The aim of the planned project is to synthesise new coating materials based on bioORMOCER®s, which are formed of functionalised biopolymers extracted from lignocellulosic biomass sources using the bioORMOCER® synthesis approach. In particular, the polymeric structures of hemicelluloses and polyesters will be exploited. By the use of these biopolymer, the organoalkoxysilanes which are components of the state-of-the art ORMOCER® lacquers will be substituted to obtain a purely biobased functional coating material. The new functional bioORMOCER®s will be coated on flexible and rigid biopolymer substrates and tested for packaging applications for food, cosmetic and medical devices.

VIBES project presents an innovative solution to resolve the end-of-life issues of thermoset composites based on the development of a new green technology focused on the controlled separation and recovery of composite material components by means of developing customised biobased bonding materials (BBM). BBM are biobased chemical moieties that will decompose under specific external stimuli (temperature, UV or electrical pulse) allowing the separation between the matrix and the reinforcing material, and facilitating the dissociation of the polymer chains of the resins to favour their efficient processing and recycling through a green washing bath, recovering the monomers/oligomers and fibres for their upcycling into new products. VIBES will study and combine three different chemical approaches to obtain BBM: vitrimers, Diels-Alder, and supramolecular architectures. VIBES project will directly contribute to achieve SIRA’s objectives in KPI1, KPI2, KPI5 and KPI8 and to demonstrate the solution decreasing the amount of non-biodegradable polymers sent to disposal or discharged to the environment by at least 40%. VIBES consortium involves 13 partners (industrially driven): 4 RTD (AITIIP, LEITAT, ULIM and DITF), 7 SME (SP, BCIRC, F&D, ARCHA, Q-PLAN, IDEC and JUNO), 1 Large Companies (ACC), and 1 OTHER (PLATA) accounting to 3 BIC associated (AITIIP, LEITAT, and ULIM). The proposed 48-months will comprise a total estimated budget of 5,299,800 €; being the 20.3% covered by consortium own contribution (in-kinds) and adding 524,311€ in additional investments during the project implementation and 9,385,000€ envisaged to upgrade TRL after the end of the project. Benefits will be significant in terms of companies growth (23.2%), increasing jobs (37 direct, 1800 indirect) and turnover (124M€) by promoting at least 2 new sector interconnections in the new created “Intrinsic Recyclable Thermoset Composites Value Chain”