
Fibre Save
Turning waste fibres into sustainable biobased plastics
Project duration
Partnership
Fibre Save brings together a broad cross-border partnership of research institutions and companies to build a new value chain for biobased plastics.
This partnership covers the entire chain from input to output and focuses on testing bio-based plastic applications in a range of sectors, such as the medical, food and packaging sectors and agri- or horticulture. In addition, all partners actively engage with companies across the value chain.
- On the input side: Renewi supplies paper and cardboard waste for hydrolysis and explores the potential of other low-value waste streams. VPK Paper provides a residual stream that is currently incinerated for conversion into biobased plastics.
- On the processing side: the Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (BBEPP) handles the pretreatment and fermentation of fibres and works on optimizing existing technologies for producing PHB biobased plastics.
- On the output side: MNEXT, a centre of expertise within Avans University of Applied Sciences, develops and tests bio-based plastic prototypes. Pack4Food connects companies from the packaging and food industries to help bring bio-based plastics to market and explore new applications. The Polymer Chemistry and Biomaterials Group at Ghent University investigates the potential of PHB for biomedical applications.
The Provincial Development Agency of East Flanders (POM Oost-Vlaanderen) coordinates the project and studies its economic feasibility.