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The cling paper that wraps a food tray takes between 500 and 1,000 years to degrade. A similar period is needed for the plastic pots that decorate a living room, the packaging of a perfume or the box that covers a children’s toy. The polystyrene that covers a newly purchased appliance will require between 100 and 500 years. They all have something in common: they are considered among the most polluting elements, they are discarded after having been used only once and for just a few minutes, and their excessive production has alerted the United Nations for years. This organization has warned that its use could triple in the next two decades and calls for the creation of a more sustainable “new plastic economy.”
Under the premise of reducing pollution, projects are multiplying in Argentina to replace single-use plastics with materials of all kinds, from mushrooms to yerba mate waste, cassava starch and flour, among others, although the lack of Investment and the absence of specific laws to generate greater environmental awareness represent a conflict to advance developments that can be massive and at an affordable price, according to scientists and entrepreneurs who have been working on sustainable initiatives for years.
Cassava and yerba mate starch to make food packaging
Globally, the food industry is one of the industries that uses single-use plastics the most, with containers, bottles, disposable trays and cling paper, among many others. With her sights set on this area, Lucía Famá, researcher at the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research (Conicet) and coordinator of the Laboratory of Polymers and Composite Materials of the Faculty of Exact Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires, works on dozens of projects. to completely eliminate the use of plastic and in other initiatives to partially replace them.
Famá and her team work on several lines of research, one of them is the development of films (adhesive paper) from cassava starch and black tea and yerba mate extract, two elements widely present in the country, which also have natural antioxidant and antibacterial properties. “The material is edible, suitable for people with celiac disease and has greater adaptability and useful life when storing food,” he explains in dialogue with América Futura.
In another of his investigations, he combines cassava starch with polymers that, although they are not 100% biodegradable, degrade much faster than conventional polyethylene. “These polymers mixed with starch generate a very resistant material, and although they are not edible, they do have rapid biodegradability,” he explains. The scientist describes that they can be used as packaging for any product, but clarifies that the greatest attraction is in the food sector. “We have many projects underway, we include other extracts to generate antioxidant materials and we also combine them with nanoparticles that have antimicrobial activity,” she highlights.
Globally, about 430 million metric tons of plastic are produced per year and the projection is alarming. According to data from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), “if current trends continue, production will triple between now and 2060.” In 2021 alone, the world generated 139 million metric tons of plastic waste, equivalent to 13,700 Eiffel towers.
In a document titled The ABC of plastics, The agency highlights that “two-thirds of plastics are ephemeral” and that “they will soon become garbage,” including bags, food packaging and bottles. In addition, it calls for thinking about new strategies and proposes a “new economy linked to plastic” that, in a more sustainable way, could generate 700,000 jobs in the next two decades.
A fungal-based biomaterial
Ayelén Malgraf is a biologist and as a child she discovered her love for mushrooms when she went out with her grandfather to collect them to use in cooking recipes that she still remembers today. Decades later, that passion of hers led her to dedicate herself fully to cultivation for gastronomic purposes in Cerrillos, province of Salta, in northern Argentina. She studying the properties of fungi In his laboratory he discovered that there were other applications “beyond the edible”, which opened the doors to the creation of resistant materials that can replace plastic.
“We sold kits of mushroom cultivation that used coffee as a substrate. When we harvested, we were left with a very hard block, like a brick, that was resistant to water,” he recalls in an interview with América Futura. In 2019, together with two partners, he gave life to Fungipor, a venture that manufactures pots, packaging, packages and other design elements that replace plastic, based on fungal mycelium, the material that is “between the leaf litter or dry branch” and that, combined with bean straw, generates a resistant material. “When dried following a specific process, the mycelium acquires the characteristics of a plastic or telgopor (polystyrene),” he explains.
For Malgraf, it is important to reduce the amount of plastic produced globally. “The packaging industry grew a lot. For 2030, much higher production is estimated, and there are almost no alternatives,” reasons the biologist and entrepreneur. However, she warns that the industry in her country is not developed, so she requires “the support of public policies and laws that force producers to take charge of the management of their waste.”
In addition to being a biodegradable material, Malgraf states that it has fireproof and acoustic properties, is lightweight and, due to its resistance, works as a good protector against bumps or falls.
Laws, regulations and investment, the challenges of the future
Famá celebrates the State’s investment to finance this type of research, although it clarifies that it is also necessary for the private sector to contribute its share and get involved. “Small and medium-sized companies are the most interested. This is a product in development, not finished, that can be very competitive, not only because of the price, but also because of the functionality, because it allows food to be stored for longer, making it more durable,” he describes.
“We have to think about the situation in Argentina and see how it can be applied in a country where the economic situation complicates the population. “We know that there are many people who arrive with money just at the end of the month and find it difficult to think about a change of these characteristics, but if there were investment from companies for large-scale development, a product like this could have very competitive prices,” the researcher highlights.
With the recent victory of the ultra Javier Milei, who will be sworn in as president this Sunday, uncertainty reigns regarding the financing that initiatives of these characteristics will have and it is still unknown who will be in charge of sensitive areas such as Science, Technology or the Environment. During the electoral campaign, Milei anticipated budget cuts in all areas and stated that this type of development and others similar should be financed by the private sector, with the detriment that this entails for ongoing research. In fact, Famá said that he fears that his laboratory will be defunded and that his development will be cut short due to lack of resources.
Malgraf, for his part, points to the need for “laws that force companies to take care of the environment.” Although he highlights that there are already companies interested in following a more sustainable production model, he clarifies that there is still “a long way to go.” “In Chile, a Producer Responsibility law is applied, which forces him to take responsibility for the waste he generates. A similar law would be necessary,” proposes the biologist and entrepreneur.
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