Food and beverage producer Nestlé announced on January 15, 2019 that it has partnered with plastics manufacturer Danimer Scientific to develop a biodegradable plastic bottle for its water business. The bottle will make use of Danimer Scientific’s polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) polymer Nodax, which may also be shared with existing partner PepsiCo. The announcement quotes Danimer’s CEO as saying “[r]esearchers have shown that PHA biodegrades in a wide range of environments, including industrial and home compost, soil, fresh and sea water . . . Nodax PHA is suitable feedstock for industrial compost, home compost, and anaerobic digester facilities as well as reuse through recycling.”
A number of questions have previously been raised regarding unknowns surrounding biodegradable plastics including biodegradability standards and toxicity testing (FPF reported), as well as impact on ocean pollution (FPF reported).
The initiative builds on Nestlé’s commitment to make all of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025 (FPF reported).
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Nestlé (January 15, 2019). “Nestlé and Danimer Scientific to Develop Biodegradable Water Bottle.”
