In this report NanoMarkets analyzes and quantifies the business opportunities available for bio-plastics in the polymer industry and along with it, discusses their applications. We also discuss the major players in the bio-plastic space and also identify the latest trends in bio-plastics. Apart from examining the market share region wise, we have highlighted the market share based on the major types of bio-plastics.

1. NanoMarkets Report
Bio-Plastics Markets
Nano-595
Published Nov.2012

2. Bio-Plastics Markets
In this report NanoMarkets analyzes and quantifies the business opportunities
available for bio-plastics in the polymer industry and along with it, discusses their
applications. We also discuss the major players in the bio-plastic space and also
identify the latest trends in bio-plastics. Apart from examining the market share Page | 1
region wise, we have highlighted the market share based on the major types of bio-
plastics. The focal point is on the following resin chemistries;
Polylactic acid (PLA)
Thermoplastic starch
Bio-polyamides
Poly hydroxyalkanoates (PHA)
Cellulose
Bio-polyethylene
Bio-polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
For the past two years starch based bio-plastics and PLA based bio-plastics have
witnessed increased growth. The demand for starch based and PLA based bio-plastics
will rise by 2 times in the next two years, but with PHA having entered into
commercial scale it has given route to its use in many bio-plastic applications
because of its numerous unique properties. Many projects are going on which cater
to the entry of bio-plastics into medical, electronics and automotive applications and
NanoMarkets expects a slew of innovative products to be launched in bio-plastics in
the coming years.
This report provides the key decision makers with the current developments in bio-
plastics, the market potential, and the growth for next eight years. The data would
be a driver for the fast-growing polymer industry as we have provided insights into
the use of renewable resources to create monomers that replace fossil-based
monomers, such as feedstock’s made from sugarcane that are used to manufacture
polyester and polyethylene. These resources could enable many fossil based product
manufacturers to change their direction towards bio-plastics in the future and also
have thrown light onto the issues (climate change, littering, unawareness of the
benefits of bio-plastics, feedstock availability and municipality actions) which exist in
the present bio-plastics markets.

3. TABLE OF CONTENTS
Executive Summary
E.1 Opportunities for bio-plastics by application
E.1.1 New business revenues for bio-plastics from the packaging sector
Page | 2
E.1.2 Emerging non-packaging applications for bio-plastics
E.2 Opportunities for bio-plastics by type of material
E.2.1 Assessment of next-generation bio-plastics
E.3 Firms to watch in the bio-plastics space
E.3.1 Analysis of joint ventures, acquisitions and cooperative agreements in bio-
plastics industry
E.3.2 Why American and European bio-plastic products are going to be more costly
than Asian bio plastic products
E.4 Supply chain and marketing opportunities for bio-plastics
E.5 Impact on existing recycling processes and facilities
E.6 Summary of eight-year forecasts of bio-plastics markets
E.6.1 Summary of forecasts by type of material
E.6.2 Summary of forecasts by application
E.7 Analysis and forecast of bio-plastics market by geographical region
Chapter One: Introduction
1.1 Background to this report
1.1.1 Emerging Markets to Power the Growth in Bio-Plastics
1.1.2 What is Driving Bio-Plastics Awareness and Growth?
1.1.3 Long-Term Challenges for the Bio-Plastics Industry
1.2 Objective and scope of this report
1.3 Methodology of this report
1.4 Plan of this report
Chapter Two: Bio-plastics: Materials and Technical Trends
2.1 Starch-based bio-plastics
2.1.1 Technical trends, commercialization and applications for starch-based bio-
plastics
2.1.2 Major suppliers of starch-based bio-plastics
2.2 Bio-Polyesters
2.2.1 Polyactic Acid & Polyhydroxy Alkanoates
2.2.2 Technical trends, commercialization and applications for cellulose based bio-
plastics and bio-polyesters
2.2.3 Major suppliers of bio-polyesters/cellulose-based bio-plastics
2.3 Bio-polymers
2.3.1 Bio-derived polyethylene

4. 2.3.2 Bio-derived polyamides
2.3.3 Other biopolymers (Sugar based biopolymers)
2.3.4 Major suppliers of bio-polymers
2.4 Novel bio-based feed stocks for bio-plastics
2.4.1 Seaweed based bio-plastics
2.4.2 Polymers from CO2 Page | 3
2.5 Key points from this chapter
Chapter Three: Market Assessments and Eight-Year Forecasts of Bio-plastics Markets
3.1 Key drivers for the bio-plastics industry
3.1.1 Which governmental regulations will really drive the bio-plastics industry?
3.1.2 How real are user concerns about feedstock availabilities?
3.1.3 Consumer environmental concerns as a driver for the bio-plastics market
3.2 Food industry applications for bio-plastics
3.2.1 Food packaging
3.2.2 Disposable utensils
3.2.3 Eight-year forecasts of food industry applications for bio-plastic by application
and type of material
3.3 Medical and pharmaceutical applications for bio-plastics
3.3.1 Pharmaceutical packaging
3.3.2 Implants
3.3.3 Diapers
3.3.4 Eight-year forecasts of medical and pharmaceutical industry applications for
bio-plastic by application and type of material
3.4 Other applications
3.4.1 Organic waste bags
3.4.2 Mulch foils
3.4.3 Electronics casing
3.4.4 Tires and other automotive applications
3.4.5 Eight-year forecasts of other industry applications for bio-plastics by
application and type of material
3.5 Emerging and future applications for bio-plastics
3.6 Importance of standards and certifications
3.7 Key points from this chapter

5. Chapter One: Introduction to Bio-Plastics
1.1 Background to this Report
NanoMarkets believes that bio-plastics have a number of major market advantages that will
create major market opportunities for these materials in the coming decade: Page | 4
 Bio-plastics represent an alternative materials choice to conventional fossil-based plastics
for design engineers in many industries;
 The use of bio-plastics can reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
 The use of bio-plastics can reduce the need for garbage disposal; and
 Biodegradation by microorganisms not only helps the soil but also acts as a fertilizer.
The latest developments in polylactic acid (PLA), polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), and other bio-
based polymers show the entry of bio-plastics into newer applications in the medical, automobile,
electronics, food packaging, and disposable cutlery industries. In addition, many large
companies, as part of corporate social responsibility programs, have adopted bio-plastics,
particularly in consumer packaging:
 Coca Cola, under the PlantBottle trademark, has the intention of substantially switching
its source of supply from fossil-based polymers to bio-plastics.
 Starbucks is now trying to turn all of its used coffee grounds, along with other bakery food
waste, into other useful products, such as laundry detergents and bio-plastics. Starbucks’
initiative works by blending the waste coffee grounds and baked goods with a mixture of
fungi to break down the carbohydrates into simple sugars.
For the past two years, starch-based bio-plastics and PLA-based bio-plastics have witnessed
increased growth. The demand for these two bio-plastics will continue to rise by a factor of two in
the next two years; however, now that PHA is being produced on a commercial scale, it has found
use in many bio-plastic applications because of its numerous unique properties.
Many projects are also underway that target the entry of bio-plastics into medical, electronics, and
automotive applications, and NanoMarkets expects a slew of innovative products to be launched
in the bio-plastics market in the coming years.
1.1.1 Emerging Markets to Power the Growth in Bio-Plastics
NanoMarkets believes that the global bio-plastics market will experience strong growth throughout
the period covered by this report.
 The European and American market segments will account for more than half of the
global market in 2012.
 The biggest growth rate in the next eight years will be from the Asia Pacific and Latin
American regions, which will expand their share of bio-plastics demand and add
substantial revenues to the bio-plastics global market.

6.  NanoMarkets believes that the dynamic growth in consumption in the Asia Pacific region
will lead to a substantial rise in demand in the next three years, enabling the region to
reach a market potential equal to that of the European and American markets by 2015.
 The biggest growth engine will be the Brazilian market, which will lead the surge in bio-
plastic demand in Latin America with its significant progress and advancements in Page | 5
biopolymer production and help the South American region grow strongly in the next eight
years.
1.1.2 What is Driving Bio-Plastics Awareness and Growth?
Apart from the global sustainability aspect, the growth of bio-plastics has been predominantly
driven by the government policies and rapid technological innovation taking place in the sector.
Government policies:
 In many countries, particularly in North America and Europe, awareness of the usage of
bio-plastics has been created by a variety of measures taken by the respective
governments. Government initiatives in many states, such as the use of eco-friendly
materials in cutlery, food containers, and plastic bags, have created an impressive
increase in the production of bio-based products.
Another factor has been the work done on the recycling and waste management front, as
this takes enormous effort. Many consumer companies have been encouraged to shift to
eco-friendly packaging, and particularly biodegradable options.
 In many Western European countries, it has been mandated that shopping bags and
food packaging must be compostable and made from degradable materials. In addition,
plans are afoot to reduce the use of conventional plastic shopping bags, and customers
now have to pay for them, thereby encouraging green initiatives. NanoMarkets believes
that bio-plastics will be the most sought-out solution for these regulations.
Separately, a new action plan intended to encourage the use of renewable raw materials
in industrial applications in Germany could help boost the country’s bio-plastics business.
Bio-plastics companies in the country may also benefit from a greater level of government
aid, and there may be incentives for those willing to invest in this area. Furthermore, the
automobile industry in Europe has been in the forefront of the bio-plastics boom.
 The Asia Pacific region is not far behind in enacting tough laws designed to reduce the
carbon foot print of conventional plastics. In countries like India, Taiwan, and
Bangladesh, strict regulations ban all shops from distributing plastic bags and Styrofoam
containers to their customers without charging for them with the aim of creating an
awareness and acceptance of more eco-friendly and biodegradable packaging products.
In Japan, Green Procurement policies were imposed along with Revised Recycling Laws
and the Pollutant Release and Transfer Registry.
 Bio-plastics are already being used as an effective tool for waste management, such as
for composting; the use of bio-plastics eases the burden of having to separate
conventional plastics before composting. Through intensive communication and media

7. campaigns, many countries around the world are raising consumer environmental
awareness and educating people about proper waste separation and avoidance, as well
as recycling and recovery.
This work is usually conducted by local municipalities. The responsibility of bio-plastic
manufacturers to recycling processes varies region to region. Composting facilities are
Page | 6
being established in many countries at present, but so far, the existing waste
management policies in the European Union, for example, have been very successful to
a large extent, with member states exceeding the recycling and recovery targets set by
EU legislation.
 From the energy consumption angle, plastics made from biological materials also
generally need lesser amounts of energy to manufacture, but are equally recyclable.
They also use fewer pollutants during the manufacturing process.
 If oil prices rise, the value of bio-plastics will increase yet further.
Technological advancements lead to evolving applications: Continued research and
development is creating high quality bio-plastic products for a wide variety of applications across
numerous industries. Advances in technical know-how with respect to commercial manufacturing,
consistency of properties, etc. are having an impact:
 The growth of the bio-plastics market has been evident in many developed countries due
to advances in the compounding technology and the blending process, in which resins
and other additives are combined to attain the desired mechanical and physical
properties. These advances have resulted in the rapid growth of many enterprises.
 Much of the pioneering work in bio-plastics has been achieved in the U.S., leading to the
successful commercial scale production of PLA and PHA.
 In Japan, the development of bio-plastics products has been substantial and rapid. Major
electronic companies have turned to bio-plastics for their product packaging needs.
Showa Denko K.K. (SDK), Japan at its Tatsuno Plant in Hyogo Prefecture, has
succeeded in producing its biodegradable polyester resin Bionolle on a commercial scale
using bio-derived succinic acid.
In addition, China’s increased development of newer green technologies is expected to
enhance investments in the bio-plastics sector, while Brazil continues to become a major
center of supply for bio-based feedstocks.
 A well-known Russian financial conglomerate, Renova, plans to invest over $400 million
in a biopolymer production plant in the Moscow region. This project is part of a
cooperation agreement between Renova and the Moscow authorities, and the plant may
export to the global market.
Not that bio-plastics are without technological issues that need to be resolved:
 Polylactic acid is considered as an eco-friendly resin. However, it has a few property
shortcomings, such as a deficient heat-deflection temperature, a slow crystallization time
and brittleness, which limit its application in injection molding processes. Changes in

8. formulation and plasticization are required to address these issues for many applications.
NanoMarkets believes that these disadvantages will tend to diminish as bio-plastics
manufacturing plants become larger and benefit from economies of scale.
 Bio-plastics that are mixed wrongly during recycling can pollute batches of oil-based
plastics, hampering standard recycling efforts. Page | 7
 Finally, bio-plastics derived from food crops can cause global price hikes in food
commodities. However, researchers are working on the creation of bio-plastics derived
from non-food crops, such as switch grass and seaweed, and thus more environmentally
friendly plastics can be expected in the future.
1.1.3 Long-Term Challenges for the Bio-Plastics Industry
These technical issues will be no doubt be settled within a reasonable period of time.
NanoMarkets believes, however, that there are much more major challenges that the bio-plastics
industry must address going forward. These challenges include the following:
 In a continuing economic downturn, will the companies, especially those in user
industries, continue to invest in “green” technologies such as bio-plastics, even if the
technology is more expensive? In addition, many green technology solutions have
succeeded to a large extent because of government initiatives (funding, regulations, etc.).
In the present gloomy global economic scenario, is the emerging bio-plastics industry in
danger of crashing?
 Bio-plastics are generally two or three times more expensive than the major conventional
plastics at the present time. How can this gap be bridged, and will the consumer be willing
to pay more?
 Can bio-plastics replace or substitute all available conventional plastics? In other words,
in the calculations of the revenue potential from bio-plastics, how optimistic should we be
about market penetrations?
 Many bio-plastics are based on materials that are also used for food. At a time when the
price of food is increasing, how does this factor change the economics/opportunity costs
associated with manufacturing bio-plastics?
1.2 Objectives and Scope of this Report
This NanoMarkets report provides key decision makers with information on current developments
in the bio-plastics field, the market potential for bio-plastics, and the forecasted growth of bio-
plastics over the next eight years.
The data is valuable for players in the fast growing polymer industry, as we have provided insights
into the use of renewable resources to create bio-based monomers that can replace
petrochemical-based compounds, such as feedstocks made from sugarcane that can be used to
manufacture polyesters and polyethylene.

9. NanoMarkets’ aim is not only to forecast market growth and describe the latest technology trends
in the bio-plastics industry, but also to provide data that will help address remaining challenges
that may impact bio-plastics industry growth, thereby making this report unique.
In this report, NanoMarkets analyzes and quantifies the business opportunities available for bio-
plastics in the polymer industry and discusses their applications. We also discuss the major
Page | 8
players in the bio-plastics space and also identify the latest trends in the bio-plastics market. For
the forecasts, the market is broken out on a regional basis, we have also broken out on both a
regional and materials basis. Finally, trends in the development of several resin chemistries are
reviewed:
 Polylactic acid (PLA)
 Thermoplastic starch
 Bio-polyamides
 Poly hydroxyalkanoates (PHA)
 Cellulose
 Bio-polyethylene
 Bio-polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
1.3 Methodology of this Report
This report is part of NanoMarkets’ ongoing coverage of worldwide advanced material markets.
As such, it draws heavily on our analysis of how the market for bio-plastics will evolve
technologically, and in general terms, the push from user industries, although we do not discuss
this issue in much depth in this particular report.
We also note that we have covered other factors, such as standards and certifications that are of
much relevance to the sustainable growth of the bio-plastics industry.
To determine where the opportunities lie in the global bio-plastics market, we have utilized both
primary and secondary research. Our primary research consisted of both personal, telephone,
and e-mail interviews with experts throughout the bio-plastics industry, while our secondary
research involved scanning and analyzing trade journals, magazines, and other technical and
government publications.
Although our analysis of the covered bio-plastics regional markets varies, our approach was the
same. In particular, certain factors were of particularly importance for our analysis:
 We examined the main demographic and economic factors that will shape demand for the
bio-plastics industry now and in the future.
 We looked at the key user industries that drive the growth of demand for this specialized
material, as well as the technical advancements made by the producers of the various
types of bio-plastics.
 We analyzed the various government policies that will play a crucial role in the growth of
bio-plastics, particularly environmental and recycling policies.
The forecasts presented in this report are ultimately derived from a combination of the above
factors.

10. 1.4 Plan of this Report
In Chapter Two, we highlight the different types of bio-plastics based on their input material. Our
special focus is on new-age novel polymers and their applications. Also discussed are the key
technical trends and major producers of bio-plastics. Although consumption of bio-plastics in
sacks, bags, and disposable cutlery is expected to grow further in the next eight years, the
packaging, electronics, and automotive sectors will see the biggest growth gains. Therefore, we Page | 9
focus on some of the key applications for bio-plastics in certain revolutionary areas in the optical,
automotive, and packaging industries.
Chapter Three includes the market assessment and eight-year forecasts of the bio-plastics
industry. The drivers and concerns of the industry are discussed in detail, and an in-depth
analysis of the applications for bio-plastics is presented. Finally, the chapter focuses on new
emerging trends and the importance of quality standards and certifications.