The VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has announced a new effort to solve energy and resource consumption concerns in the forestry and textile industries. The Energy First initiative aims to serve as a starting point for a completely new technology that sets the conditions for the production of low-carbon, energy-efficient, and recyclable fibre-based products. Within non-wovens, used in napkins and wipes for example, VTT expects a strong shift from traditional products that contain plastic to cellulose-based products.
With a budget of around € 20 million over the next four years, the initiative consists of several projects and will establish a new innovative open-access pilot line in Jyväskylä, Finland. The collaborative research aims at developing and testing commercially viable, sustainable alternatives for cardboard packaging, hygiene products, and non-woven fabrics.
“This new initiative is a pivotal step towards more sustainable and competitive fibre-based products, and has the potential for great impact, thanks to more than 50 industrial partners. We are excited about the prospect of 1:1 commercial projects with companies, driving innovation in energy-efficient paper board production,” says Atte Virtanen, Vice President, Biomaterial Processing and Products at VTT.
Products made with the new technology are intended to be compatible with current recycling systems. Furthermore, fibre-based packaging is manufactured in a way that makes it a more sustainable option than reusable packaging. The proposed EU packaging and packaging rule demands that both raw materials and manufacturing processes be sustainable, and recyclable bio-based packaging solutions must pass a sustainability review.
In addition to reducing water and energy consumption, the project aims to redefine the forest industry’s environmental effect and increase the competitiveness of fibre-based goods. For example, by making the products lighter, more products for consumer use can be produced from the same amount of wood, increasing resource efficiency.
