As one who hates litter and the over abundance of plastic bags blowing in the wind I found this article to be a breath of fresh air!

Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. and Thailand’s PTT Pcl (PTT) plan to jointly invest 7 billion baht ($232 million) in a bio-plastic venture that will start production in late 2014, the companies said today.

PTT MCC Biochem Co. will produce plastic from sugar, PTT said in a statement in Bangkok. PTT and Mitsubishi will each hold a 50 percent stake in the venture, it said.

Construction of the plant will start next year, according to the statement.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-07-14/mitsubishi-chemical-ptt-to-start-bio-plastic-joint-venture-in-thailand.html

I smell a 'Hub' coming..

That's great news for Thailand as it's doing a lot to tackle bio-plastic issues. The key to Thailand's future prosperity relies on somehow combining it's agricultural strength with bio-plastics. I always thought Thailand's role would be soley to export sugar, corn and tapica to make bio-fuel or bio-plastics, but obviously domestic production could be favorable.

About time. Surely more plastic bags used per person here than anywhere else on the planet.

That's great news for Thailand as it's doing a lot to tackle bio-plastic issues. The key to Thailand's future prosperity relies on somehow combining it's agricultural strength with bio-plastics. I always thought Thailand's role would be soley to export sugar, corn and tapica to make bio-fuel or bio-plastics, but obviously domestic production could be favorable.

Yep,and their role in Exporting those ingredients for bio fuel is so well managed that they are currently even not able to produce bio fuel for themselves for the past 6 months.

Bio-degradable plastic bags are already here....

But the materials involved are slightly more expensive.

Businesses, supermarkets (Tesco's etc) want the cheapest, so as things stand we will continue to have rubbishy thin bags where anything liquid requires double bagging....

Bio-degradable plastic bags are already here....

But the materials involved are slightly more expensive.

Businesses, supermarkets (Tesco's etc) want the cheapest, so as things stand we will continue to have rubbishy thin bags where anything liquid requires double bagging....

Unless it is legislated otherwise.

Only takes 10,000 years to disintigrate instead of 20,000.

I have often thought wether we should be manufacturing bio-degradable plastic bags for the one -use purposes with all the associated costs of manufacture,distribution, and the carbon exchange in the atmosphere and so on or would we be better off manufacturing quality,longer lasting plastc bags and goods that will be re-used multiple times.

How many times have you re-used a plastic bag to find it is well into the disintergating stage of its life rendering it not fit for it's intended purpose. I try to re-use plastic bags and recycle as much as possible.

I know it ultimatly comes down to the education and envirionmental awareness of the population , not only in Thailand but everywhere - an utopian impossibility i fear.

Just thought i open this up for debate.i certainly don't know the answer .

Edited July 15, 201114 yr by xen

The market is maturing a bit. There wasn't room or demand for 'Hefty' type billion dollar plastic trash bag industry before because most of the commoners re-use their supermarket bags. Well now we'll have all kinds of bags (because "really," we need different kinds of bags for twigs, leaves, paper waste, just for disposing fruit, etc.) strewn everywhere and have plenty to whinge about now.

If the raw material for these bags is sugar, does that mean that they are edible.

That would quickly solve the litter problem, would need more dentists tho'

Seriously, good move, nice to see that some here do think about the environment.

I smell a 'Hub' coming..

The plant at Map Ta Phut, expected to start commercial production in 2014, is designed to produce 20,000 tons of polybutylene succinate annually from 54,000 tons of raw sugar.

An abundance of local sugarcane could help make Thailand the Asian hub for biodegradable plastic production, a PTT executive said.

You must be psychic!

http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2011/07/15/Thailand-Japan-to-build-new-plastic-plant/UPI-81401310752510/?spt=hs∨=bn

will produce plastic from sugar

Sounds good but how many times have we had sugar shortages over the last few years?

<BR>That's great news for Thailand as it's doing a lot to tackle bio-plastic issues. The key to Thailand's future prosperity relies on somehow combining it's agricultural strength with bio-plastics. I always thought Thailand's role would be soley to export sugar, corn and tapica to make bio-fuel or bio-plastics, but obviously domestic production could be favorable.<BR>

<BR><BR><BR>There are all ready company's here that make bio degradable packaging,i took some sample's last year to 3 big supermarket chain's in uk,Tesco,Sainsbury,and Morrison's,they all said product was great,but would'nt buy ,as the cost was too expensive,like 5 p a unit more !!

Good to see that coming but doesn't tackle the problem of litter everywhere. Of the 14 or so countries I have lived in for at least a year, Thailand has to be the most "litter happy". Until Thais can learn to not just thoughtlessly discard litter at the street side and shops not pointlessly put every thing purchased into plastic bags, Thailand will remain looking like a garbage dump.

What is the point of putting a newspaper it to a plastic bag?

Education and a tax on plastic bags ar what is need.

That bio-degradeable plastic bag at the roadside is still going to take an absolute minimum of 60 days to degrade.