At UC’s Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Dr. Alex Yip is leading research into food waste conversion. Source: University of Canterbury

A research team from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand has devised a new technique for turning food waste into chemical components that could potentially be used as the building blocks for making bioplastics.

In collaboration with Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Dr. Alex Yip of the University of Canterbury’s Department of Chemical and Process Engineering has devised a proof-of-concept method for creating a catalyst for making the conversion of food waste into bioplastic achievable. This, according to Dr. Yip, will be accomplished by extracting polylactic acid (PLA) and 5-HMF, which is an organic compound, from the food-waste stream. Once extracted, those chemical components could potentially serve as the building blocks for making sustainable bioplastics with a host of properties to accommodate consumer needs.

“This waste stream carries both opportunity and financial costs,” Dr. Yip said. “What we’re trying to do is add value to that waste by converting it into something useful while at the same time responding to another environmental problem in Aotearoa New Zealand, which is the plastic waste problem.”

If successful, the method could potentially have food waste serving as a raw material for bioplastics that are fully degradable and 100% recyclable. Additionally, the approach could curb greenhouse gas emissions while also cutting back on the number of non-biodegradable plastics in the world’s oceans and landfills.

For now, the research team will attempt to scale up the process for commercial application.

Researchers at the University of Canterbury aren’t the only ones attempting to find solutions for the plastic waste problem affecting ecosystems all over the world. A London-based startup is attempting to turn lobster shells into a plastic alternative while another startup in Mexico is attempting to turn avocado seeds into disposable cutlery and straws. Meanwhile, a product design student at the University of Sussex in the U.K. has developed a plastic film wrap alternative that is composed of fish skin, fish scales and red algae.