1. PPA Sustainability Summit 08/10/15 Tony Breton Which Plastic Films Should We Choose and Why?

2. Profile – Novamont / BBIA Novamont Pioneer and a market leader in the sector of biodegradable materials containing renewable resources Tailor-made materials for a wide range of industrial applications (Mater-Bi®) Strong patent portfolio (more than 120 articles, >90patent families & 800 patents, >100M Euro of investment) European Inventor of the Year 2007 (SME & Research Category) Bio-based & Biodegradable Industries Association Founded June 2015 UK trade body for companies producing bio-based and biodegradable products and promotes the circular bioeconomy

3. Contents Mailing Films Needs Conventional Material Options Understanding “bio”

4. What are the ‘must haves’ from a mailing film? Printability Franking & Address details Strength & tear resistance To survive the postal & delivery processes Deliver the magazine, and any extras, safely ‘Bead’ heat sealability Cut & seal the edge – needs a strong weld with very little material to work with. Transparency

5. What are the ‘conventional’ material options? All the following meet the ‘Top 3’ mailing needs: Cast polypropylene (CPP) Best transparency and gloss Currently not deemed recyclable in UK OPRL scheme Low density Polyethylene (LDPE) Slightly hazier than CPP Slightly waxy feel Consumers can recycle these via Carrier bag collection schemes High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Slightly more Hazy than LDPE. Matt appearance and more paper-like feel Consumers can recycle these via Carrier bag collection schemes

6. Why is there so little film recycling compared to papers and rigid packaging? Film is more complicated than you think!! Everyone knows what paper & board look like Both can be collected and repulped on a practical basis Bottle to bottle recycling is practical (limited polymer types in a format that consumers can understand) But even packaging experts can find it difficult to differentiate between the multitude of different plastics in the flexible packaging world: CPP, BOPP, LDPE, HDPE, PET, PVC, Cellophane™, PS… And then many of them are printed, laminated together with adhesives etc… They provide great functionality for minimal use of resource But they are the most difficult packaging sector to ‘revalorise’ after use WRAP planning collection trials of films & bags from households

7. “Consumers don’t like all this plastic film. Is there a greener alternative” ?

8. Yes, but it can be confusing!

9. What are bio-plastics? Source: European Bioplastics www.europeanbioplastics.org

10. Bio-based Wholly or partly derived from biomass (EN 16575) Naturally synthesized polymers e.g. Rubber Cellulose e.g. regenerated cellulosic fibre rayon or cellulosic plastics (Natureflex TM ) Grown in crop e.g. PHA Bacterial fermentation of starch or sugar – PLA – PHA – PE / PET / PP / PVC (from bio-ethanol) Starch / modified starch plastic or co-polyester Vegetable oil based polyesters Source Production of renewable polymers from crop plants http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-313X.2008.03431.x/pdf

11. Biodegradable Capable of undergoing biological anaerobic or aerobic degradation leading to CO2, H2O, methane, biomass and mineral salts depending on the environmental conditions of the process Aggressiveness of Environment 1 determines rate of biodegradation: 70 - 50 C50 – 10 C Industrial Composting Anaerobic Digestion Home composting SoilFresh water Marine water But what does biodegradable mean to the consumer?

12. [Oxo, Oxo-Bio] Degradable Neither bio-based or biodegradable / compostable in accordance with recognised standards Fossil based polymers with additive e.g. cobalt stearate to induce fragmentation Not acceptable to composting processes Rejected by UK recycling industry + WRAP/OPRL + PPA Guidance Do not degrade in landfill Minimal extra cost Verdict: No tangible sustainability or performance benefit and risk of ‘greenwash’

13. Oxo-degradables after 9 months composting

14. Bioplastic films Bio-based and Compostable: A number of emerging Bioplastic films offer the right blend of physical properties for mailing uses: Benefits Potential reduction in CO2 emissions Use of readily renewable raw materials – “virtuous carbon cycle” Meet global standards on biodegradation and composting Disadvantages: Currently more expensive than conventional plastics due to raw materials and scale of manufacture Verdict: Potentially marketable & independently-verifiable sustainability benefits

15. Suitable Bioplastic films for mailing – what to look for? Starch, Co-polyester and PBS resins (or blends thereof) all provide the right mechanical properties in film format Easily printable using standard print processes Certified to the European norm for Compostability: EN13432 Certain grades are certified as Home Compostable too Exact level of Renewable Raw materials depends on grades These materials do tend to be a little hazier than CPP and PE, but contact- clarity is still good.

16. Case Study – Internazionale Italian weekly news & current affairs magazine Sales ~125K, 33K subscribers Switched to biodegradable & compostable films for mailing and inserts in 2012 Film also needed to meet technical demands of Italia Poste:

17. Political Developments England Defra seeking “super” biodegradable material EU Circular Economy Package Revised packaging recycling targets Carrier Bag Directive Positive position regarding (home) compostables Negative position regarding oxo-degradables pre-Directive France Banning various conventional plastic articles Requiring all mailing film to be home compostable by 01/01/2017

18. In Summary

19. Thank you Any questions? Tony Breton tony.breton@novamont.com www.novamont.com www.bbia.org.uk tony.breton@novamont.com www.novamont.com www.bbia.org.uk