Foreword
Plastic pollution is a widely considered
to be a significant global challenge, but some of the lasting effects of
plastic pollution are yet to be fully understood. The negative effects of microplastic
pollution in particular has received plenty of media attention recently, but it’s
a complex issue and somewhat tricky to avoid when certain plastics are still important
materials used around the natural environment. For example, plastic mulch is
widely used to increase crop yields across the globe as it improves soil
temperature and moisture, but plastic residues that remain affects soil health,
and therefore long-term crop production. A recently published paper has quantitively
studied some of the physicochemical impact that plastic resides have on soil
health. Including a particular focus on China, they found that plastic residue
accumulation in the soil of cropland used for cotton cultivation caused an estimated
6-10% drop in the yield of cotton. We note that the use of soil biodegradable
mulch films that are available (certifiable against European standards), could
be used to reduce plastic contamination.
In general, the
public wants to........
Other News this Month Includes:
Policy
- Architects call for ban exemption
Markets
- Biobased face mask
- UK-based Tensei joins RSB
Research & Development
- Review of dicarboxylic acid production from yeast
- SDGs and the bioeconomy
- Avacta joins race to detect Covid 19
- Algae growth on 3D-printed corals
- Economic perspective of the bioeconomy
- Plastic pollution in croplands threatens long‐term food security
Polymers
- Self-healing material review
- Plastics and the role for biobased alternatives
- Biopolymer to PPE during Coronavirus
- Clariant and Floreon collaborate
Chemicals
- Cosmetics preservation
- Towards biobased asphalt
- Production of disinfectant for Clariant
- Sanitiser help from POET
Consumer Products
- Consumers like carbon labelling
- Biobased apron
- Natural polymer for sunscreen formulations
- Re-Burberry
Patents
Events
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