For their contribution toward making plastic water bottles more sustainable, two France-based industry giants, Danone (Paris; www.danone.com) and Nestlé Waters (Paris; www.nestle-waters.com), the water division of the Swiss-based Nestlé Group, are cooperating with a Sacramento, California / USA-start-up, Origin Materials (http://originmaterials.com) in the “NaturALL Bottle Alliance." The goal is to drive commercial-scale production of a PET bottle made from bio-based feedstocks such as cardboard, sawdust or wood chips as well as – potentially – rice hulls, straw and agricultural residue. The technology, said to represent a “scientific breakthrough,” is planned to be made available to the entire food and beverage industry.

The companies said their new bottle will be as lightweight, transparent, recyclable and protective of its contents as conventionally produced PET without being a drain on natural resources. Technology currently on the market makes it possible to have a biomass content of 30%, but Origin’s “breakthrough technology” aims to reach 100% bio-based bottles produced at commercial scale, said its CEO John Bissel. The link-up with the bottled water industry will facilitate the scale-up from pilot production, he added. The partners have not said where they will sell the first products; it seems likely, however, that the launch will be made in Europe.

Origin has already produced samples of 80% bio-based PET at its California pilot, and a new “pioneer plant” is expected to start up some time this year. By 2018, the company hopes to produce the first samples of PET based on more than 60% biomass, with the content rising to 75% by 2020 and to 95% by 2021. The Alliance partners plan to continue researching the technology to reach the 100% target. The usual route to PET from fossil fuels requires six or seven chemical steps, Bissel said, while Origin’s process gets by with only four. Instead of crude oil, the company uses inexpensive material such as pinewood, he said.

Klaus Hartwig, head of R&D at Nestlé Waters, said the plans for the new PET bottle are in response to consumer demand. “Sustainability for the planet is sustainability for the company.” Frederic Jouin, head of R&D for plastic materials at Danone, said his company’s goal is to “establish a circular economy for packaging by sourcing sustainable materials and creating a second life for all plastics.” With the Alliance, he noted, the companies will be able to reach their targets faster than working alone.

Danone and Nestlé Waters are providing expertise and teams as well as financial support to the project in order to help Origin make the technology available to the entire food and beverage industry in what they hope will be “record time.”