Welcome to the Plastics Weekly, NEO’s regular news monitoring of the plastics industry.
Every Monday, we publish a roundup of the top developments in plastics and sustainability – from regulatory changes to company news.
This week’s highlights:
- Denmark’s consumer protection agency plans to tighten regulations on green marketing following complaints of “greenwashing” by companies and brands. This especially relates to plastics products, where nearly half of “green” claims can be misleading, according to the Environmental Coalition on Standards (ECOS) non-profit. Denmark’s new guidelines would come as the European Commission works to strengthen regulations on the way products are made and how information on sustainability is communicated to consumers. (Forbes)
- A Japanese consortium is targeting a potential $320 billion market for using microalgae to help reduce emissions. Oil refiner Eneos Holdings and Honda Motors are joining more than 35 Japanese companies and institutions to study how to turn microalgae into fossil-free versions of aviation fuel, naphtha, resins and other products. Mitsui Chemicals Inc. is one of a number of chemical companies that have joined the initiative in hopes of using microalgae-based naphtha in their production of solvents and plastics. (The Energy Mix)
- The U.S. Plastics Pact has released a list of 11 “problematic and unnecessary” materials that the group says should be eliminated by 2025. The Pact, which unites more than 100 busineses, non-profits and government organisations, seeks progress toward a circular economy for plastic packaging in the United States. The list identifies 11 materials that are not currently reusable, recyclable or compostable at scale in the U.S. and are not projected to be kept in a closed loop in practice and at scale by 2025. (Sustainable Brands)