And the winner is …

European Bioplastics, in cooperation with Renewable Carbon Plastics, presented the European Bioplastics Innovation Award 2025. On December 3rd the attendees of the 20th European Bioplastics Conference (EBC2025) voted for the winner out of five finalists (see Renewable Carbon Plastics issue 05/2025), who gave a 5 minute pitch each on December 2nd.

The award recognises outstanding innovations that foster the sustainable transformation of the bioplastics sector. This year’s finalists have been selected for their achievements in material innovation, product design, sustainability, and market readiness.

With this award, European Bioplastics highlights innovations that combine technological excellence, tangible sustainability benefits, and strong market relevance.

And the winner is:

Celanese (UK) in cooperation with Bio4Life for their Compostable labels for fruit & vegetables.

Traditional plastic labels and non-compostable adhesives contaminate organic waste streams, hindering composting efforts and creating microplastic pollution. The TÜV DIN certified Home Compostable label stock made of Clarifoil^®Cellulosic BioWhite Film and BioTAK^® HC700 adhesive directly solves this problem, ensuring that labeled produce can be composted without having to remove the label, a process that is both inefficient and often overlooked by consumers.

BioTAK HC700 is the first commercially available pressure sensitive adhesive for labels and in combination with Clarifoil Cellulosic BioWhite Film provides a total label stock solution. It is highly effective on the moist and often textured surfaces of fruits and vegetables being strong enough through transport and handling while still breaking down completely in home composting environments without leaving harmful residues. The face stock of Clarifoil Cellulosic BioWhite Film is breathable and provides a water barrier. It conforms well to the various shapes of fruit and yet its optimised stiffness allows automatic or hand-held application. The material properties of low equilibrium moisture content and a dry surface prevent the growth of mould and stops the accelerated ripening of bananas, both of which are evident with other substrates.

The innovation lies in the product’s ability to combine functional performance with environmental integrity. The adhesive must be strong enough to adhere to a variety of produce types and surfaces and also be certified to disintegrate and biodegrade fully. Celanese and Bio4Life have successfully engineered a solution that achieves this, providing a practical, scalable, and fully compliant alternative to conventional labels.

Source

Bioplastics MAGAZINE, 2025-12-03.

Supplier

arweco
Bio4Life
Celanese
European Bioplastics e.V.
Futamura Chemicals Co., Ltd.
Repaq

Share