Brazilian petrochemical giant Braskem (São Paulo; www.braskem.com.br) has signed an agreement with Australian bioplastics producer Plantic Technologies (Altona, Victoria; www.plantic.com.au) allowing Plantic to use PE resin produced from sugarcane by Braskem in its ultra-high barrier “eco Plastic” packaging range.

The use of the bioplastic will increase the renewable content of Plantic’s “eco Plastic” to over 90%, while maintaining the barrier properties offered by the packaging. Manufacturers do not have to invest in new processing or packaging technologies in order to use the trays and sheets made from “eco Plastic” as they have been developed as a drop-in replacement for a range of traditional plastics used in modified atmosphere and ultra high-barrier packaging. The rigid trays and roll stock are offered in a transparent form as well as a variety of colours and multi-colour formats.