VTT develops plastic-like packaging material made from completely renewable raw materials

VTT has developed a material, in collaboration with with Arla Foods, Paulig and Wipak, that can be used in food packaging similarly to plastic due to its thermoformable properties.

VTT says the final application of the Thermocell material developed by VTT will depend on how companies want to use it.

It is suitable for many purposes for which fossil-based plastics are currently being used. Thermoplastic cellulose, i.e. cellulose that can be moulded using heat, can be processed in conventional plastic treatment processes. Like plastic, the material can be refined into packaging films and bulk commodities. 

With all potential uses of the material not yet known, the next step in the development process is to produce hundreds of kilos of the material and process it into various packaging prototypes with companies.

The plastic-like, thermoplastic cellulose material is one component of the packaging material by VTT that reached the top spot in the 2018 Ellen MacArthur Foundation competition. An essential part of commercialising that packaging material concept is bringing thermoplastic cellulose into industrial production.

VTT and corporate co-operation can help to accelerate the launch of the material into the market. The project concludes in May 2021.