Eco-Polymers Company has announced it will start manufacturing by the third quarter of 2009 UK-based Symphony Environmental’s additives that create biodegradable plastic products.
Established recently in Dubai and Sharjah, Eco-Polymers is currently serving as exclusive distributors of Symphony Environmental for its products in the UAE.
Eco-Polymers is marketing Symphony’s trademarked range of d2w oxo-biodegradable plastic additives before beginning manufacturing the same in Sharjah at an initial capacity of 800 tonnes per month.
Commenting on the tie-up, Winston Pryce, general manager, Eco-polymers, says: “Ordinary plastic and recycled plastic can now be made oxo-biodegradable. This is done by including d2w additive which makes them degrade and then biodegrade, on land or at sea, in the light or the dark, in heat or cold, in whatever timescale is required, leaving no fragments, no methane and no harmful residues.  d2w oxo-biodegradable products meet American Standard 6954, and are made from a by-product of oil refining which used to be wasted.”
The technology is based on a very small amount of pro-degrading additive introduced into the manufacturing process, thereby changing the behaviour of the plastic. Degradation begins when the programmed service life is over (as controlled by the additive composition) and the product is no longer required.
“There is little or no additional cost involved in products made with this technology, which can be made with the same machinery and workforce as conventional plastic products. There is no need to change suppliers either,” he says.
The plastic does not just fragment, but is consumed by bacteria and fungi after the additive has reduced the molecular structure to a level which permits living micro-organisms access to the carbon and hydrogen. This process continues until the material has biodegraded to nothing more than CO2, water and humus and it does not leave fragments of petro-polymers in the soil.
“We are delighted to have entered into this contract and now look forward to working closely with Symphony, all factories, end users and other concerned parties, to ensure that d2w oxo-biodegradable additives become the products of choice in our collective effort to solve the plastic pollution problem in the Middle East,” says Pryce.  
“We are pleased to have concluded this agreement, as it provides the framework for effective and comprehensive marketing of our d2w oxo-biodegradable products in the Middle East,” comments Michael Laurier, chief executive of Symphony Environmental Technologies.
“We now look forward to working with Eco-polymers to implement all phases of the project, to ensure that our products are delivered competitively and efficiently to the marketplace,” Laurier adds.
Symphony Environment is a subsidiary of Symphony Environmental Technologies and a world leader in oxo-biodegradable plastic technology. The technology is recognised by the d2w droplet logo on thousands of tonnes of oxo-biodegradable plastic products. In the last 12 months it is estimated that more than five billion plastic products have been made with the additives supplied by the company. The company says it has a diverse and growing customer base and has successfully established itself as an international business. Its d2w products can already be found in more than 60 countries. It is also developing innovative waste-to-energy technology and is developing cost-effective processes to convert plastics, tyres and other waste streams into valuable products.