Coca-Cola wants to launch a "100% plant bottle" for European and Japanese materials to take the lead in benefiting

According to reports, the field of plant plastics has ushered in some progress, not only from the research group at the forefront of materials science, but also from suppliers of traditional petroleum-based plastics such as Lego and Pepsi.

Coca-Cola's latest advances in the field recently launched its first-ever bottle made of 100 percent plant-based plastics, and the company says its production technology is ready to scale up trials. It is reported that the newly launched plant bottle is composed of recyclable PET (polyester) plastic.

PET is the most recycled plastic in the world, consisting of two molecules: approximately 30% monoethylene glycol (MEG) and 70% terephthalic acid (PTA). The original PlantBottle was launched in 2009, and the MEG in it is available from sugar cane, but so far the PTA has been sourced from oil-based sources, so this is also the raw material part that the company has been working hard to solve in the plant bottle.

In the new process, Coca-Cola used a technique developed by plant-based plastics company Vient to develop sugars in corn into a hydrocarbon called paraxylene (bPX), which in turn can be converted into a plant-based terephthalic acid (bPTA). As a result, the oil-based PTA problem is solved.

Another breakthrough technology simplifies the production process of MEGs and allows flexibility in feedstocks, which means that more types of renewable materials can be used. Typically, MEG is produced by converting sugarcane or corn into bioethanol as an intermediate and then converting it into bioethylene glycol. Now, the sugar source can produce MEGs directly, simplifying the process. The company says the process can be adapted to use hardwood raw materials from sawmills or other wood industrial waste.

Dana Breed, Coca-Cola's Global Director of Packaging and Sustainability, said, "Our goal in plant-based PET is to use surplus produce to reduce its carbon footprint, so the combination of commercial technologies brought by the partners is an ideal match for this strategy." ”

Coca-Cola said the technology is ready for commercial rollout and plans to phase out raw petroleum-based PET from plastic bottles in Europe and Japan by 2030 in favor of recycled or renewable materials. As a first step, the company produced a limited 900 PlantBottle prototype.

Nancy Quan, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer at Coca-Cola, said: "We are taking significant steps to reduce the use of 'virgin' petroleum plastics as we commit to a circular economy and support our shared goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. ”

"We believe plant-based plastics play a key role in our future overall PET portfolio, supporting our goal of reducing our carbon footprint, reducing our reliance on 'pristine' fossil fuels, and facilitating PET collection to support the circular economy." He added.