In France, chemical giant BASF has signed a marketing contract with French milk-protein films company Lactips. Under the terms of the deal, BASF will have exclusive rights to market Lactips’ water soluble, biobased and biodegradable films.
Lactips was founded in 2014 by plastics expert MarieHélène Gramatikoff and Saint-Etienne University researcher Frédéric Prochazka. The films are currently being used for unit dose detergents and Lactips aims to roll out the films to replace polyvinyl alcohol in dishwasher tabs. The films are also edible and fit for use as food packaging. Lactips plans to build a plant in France and ramp up capacity to 3,000 tons/year.
“Sustainability plays a major role in all of BASF’s business processes,” says Robert Parker, Director, New Business Development at Care Chemicals, BASF. “Lactips’ solution for films for dishwasher tabs supplements our existing portfolio of sustainable offerings. It allows us to provide our customers with a broad portfolio of bio-degradable products for the home care industry.”