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.

RESERVIST aims to establish ‘reservist cells’ that in times of crises can be activated within 48hrs to switch to manufacturing medical products and services that are spiking in demand. Such a ‘reservist cell’ will consist of (i) a backbone network of core companies for manufacturing and testing; (ii) an extended network for further capacities (eg local provision, packaging, distribution, customization,…); (iii) a digital coordination platform and (iv) a pool of experts from the companies of the network. These cells will become operational in case of an emergency/pandemic but to make economic sense, the same approach of rapid flexibility and adaptability will be used to deal with surging demand in ‘normal circumstances’. To realise this concept, we will first work on three levels individually: network level, connected manufacturing/digital manufacturing level and technical level, the latter referring to tweaking manufacturing lines, developing required materials and establishing links with testing/certification. Next, we will demonstrate the repurposing of 5 existing manufacturing lines within 48hrs towards manufacturing of ‘textile PPE’ (surgical and respiratory face masks, medical aprons) and ‘respiratory ventilators’ (invasive and non invasive) that comply with necessary testing and certification and proceed with the embedment of the reservist cells at the partners in the network. We will develop blueprints for further take-up and replication of the concept to other sectors. Within the project we will develop two replication demos: ‘disinfection equipment’ and ‘emergency medical equipement’. To support the Cells we will tap into the worldwide maker community and into relevant OITBs and networks. The consortium is strongly industry-driven, including 4 LE and 7 SMEs coming from 7 EU countries. To maximise impact, we will extend our partner network and our Impact Support Group (18 Support Letters provided at proposal stage).

The TERRIFIC project will demonstrate at TRL 8 bio-based, circular flagship solutions for improved properties packaging applications, fulfilling the superior requirements in terms of performance along their entire supply value chain while improving circularity and resource efficiency. To do so, 6 ambitious specific objectives have been selected: - Implement a first-of-its kind multipurpose biorefinery for the obtaining of biobased building blocks including 1,4-bioBDO, and C18-DCA at TRL 8 and demonstrate its replicability - Successfully Produce of biopolyesters and biomaterials with RRM > 95% and improved properties (barrier and durability) at TRL 8 including 1,4-bioBDO, C18-DCA from the multipurpose biorefinery - Develop biobased, recyclable, compostable and high-performing flagship packaging products by means of traditional industrial technologies - Demonstrate the sustainability, circularity and safety of the biobased materials developed for the flagship packaging products with respect to existing fossil or bio-based benchmarks - Improve circularity and resource efficiency through the validation of multiple end-of-life scenarios for the developed Flagship products - Evaluate and demonstrate the replicability of the TERRIFIC concept through a multi-actor approach to create an interactive innovation model for engagement of all the actors in the value chain in the exploitation of new business opportunities TERRIFIC is a multidisciplinary project engaging 19 partners from 9 countries covering the whole value chain (including 6 SMEs). An implementation plan is presented in the form of 7 work packages, 5 of which are technical in nature. Synergy in communication and dissemination by the several partners and stakeholders (including a multiactor interest group) will maximize the project progress and impact. Solutions to overcome the barriers as well as appropriate deliverables, tasks, milestones, and risks to complete the project objectives in due time are presented.

The EU has set ambitious goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to combat climate change. The transport sector is a major contributor to these emissions, but the targets for this sector cannot be met with currently available materials technology. Due to the direct link between weight and energy consumption, EU investment in advancing lightweight technologies is crucial. Therefore, fibre-reinforced composites are a key technology, but they are not yet widely used due (1) to their high price, (2) overdesign due to a lack of toughness and (3) difficulties with recycling. Addressing these challenges through fibre-hybridisation requires a highly interdisciplinary team of researchers with a strong background in both modelling and experimentation. Since such combined expertise is scarce, HyFiSyn aims to train 13 early stage researchers to become interdisciplinary, multi-talented experts. The 8 universities, 5 industrial partners and 2 professional training organisations offer the researchers a unique opportunity to be trained by world-leading experts in cutting-edge technologies, where they are supported by a strong network and industry participation. The training programme strongly emphasises entrepreneurship and innovation skills to maximise the impact of the project, thereby increasing the EU’s innovation capacity. Simultaneously, the researchers will be trained through research by developing and experimentally validating advanced simulation tools to predict optimal microstructures for fibre-hybrid composites. These microstructures will then be manufactured and verified in industrial applications. To further increase its impact, HyFiSyn also designs hybrids with smart and functional properties, and will investigate strategies for more efficient usage of recycled fibres through fibre-hybridisation. The overall goal is to fundamentally understand synergetic effects, so that they can be maximally exploited and unprecedented composite performance can be achieved.