This Plastics Maker has Big Companies Thirsting for its Technology
upstart writes in with an IRC submission for Runaway1956:
This plastics maker has big companies thirsting for its technology:
[...] a little-known plastics company set to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday has Wall Street salivating - thanks to technology being eyed by major companies like PepsiCo and Bacardi because it promises to turn plastic into dust.
[...] Their excitement centers on Danimer's efforts to help large companies make throwaway plastic items - straws, food containers, snack bags - more environmentally friendly. Danimer makes plastic pellets using canola oil instead of petrochemicals that promises to quickly decompose when met with bacteria from, say, a landfill or lake.
[...] Danimer-made plastics "need an incredible amount of bacteria to decompose," so the packaging can be shelf stable for years, the investor source said. "They showed us a Tide bottle they made that has been sitting on the shelf for 10 years."
Place Danimer packaging, though, in a landfill, or bury it outside and it will decompose in weeks without leaving microplastics behind.
[...] As Danimer grows, it could face pushback from the recycling industry because its bottles melt in heat, which makes them non-recyclable.
Danimer supporters argue that roughly 75 percent of plastic bottles now end up in bacteria-filled landfills, and that those that go to recycling centers will still not leave an environmental footprint since they will melt and disintegrate.
Still, the bottles threaten to muck up recycling efforts if not disposed of properly, critics said.
Our plastics problems are solved!!
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