PETpla.net Insider 09 / 2021

Editour PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 09/21 www.petpla.net 15 HIGH PERFORMANCE L IQUID COLOURS & ADDI T IVES FOR POLYOLEFINS STAND B3-3209 Alessandra Funcia, Head of Sales & Marketing at Sukano AG 1) The pandemic has definitely impacted our business. Most importantly, it affected our daily way of working, requiring imme- diate and quick rearrangement and high- est flexibility for our entire organisation globally. Our supply chain team stra- tegically negotiated supply conditions, we operated even closer to our partners and our employees, supported by the management, demon- strated extreme resilience, making our family business style even more intimate. Because our business was from the very beginning designated as “essential”, we never stopped. On the contrary, we faced increased demand from customers, some to ensure busi- ness continuity, some due to higher demand in areas such as medical appli- cations and food packaging materials. The market and safety situation seem poised to remain volatile and uncertain for the coming months, and we there- fore expect business to continue at the same pace, with our regional and local suppliers slowly accommodating raw material availability and stock levels. The question that remains to be answered is what demand may be for end of the year festivities, and how our supply chain will be able to react to that. We expect to be ready for different scenarios, as we plan and further strengthen our supply chain and customer relationship to grant their needs on time in full. 2) The SUPD impacts about 40% of the total plastic packaging business in Europe. The Green Deal is expected to impact our entire business as it takes shape. And we find it much more of an opportunity than a threat. At Sukano we closely follow the regulatory and legisla- tive evolution to ensure we are ahead of changes or, if we are able through our innovations, to proactively make our products and customer applica- tions compliant with them before they are enforced. Whether it’s mandatory recycling rates, design for recycling conditions or alternative end of lives, the Sukano portfolio is a direct result of the company’s strategy which is derived from our foundations: pioneering ideas, an entrepreneurial spirit that guides our way of working and servicing the market. The goal is to continuously cause posi- tive social impact, ensuring we are part of the solution (#wearepartofthesolution) through our product offerings and per- formance. Sukano focuses on master- batches and compounds in PET, the number one and most recycled plastic in the world, by targeting mainly closed loop or circular applications. We are also a leading company in bio- degradable masterbatches that help to catalyse conver- sion of conventional plastics to biobased and degrada- ble options, where the end application makes sense and infrastructure is in place to accommodate compostability as end of life. 3) The entire plastics value chain - and I dare expand this to any material value chain players that are active in the pack- aging market segment - must assess their current business models and identify where rapid change is needed to accommodate the societal and envi- ronmental demand at its forefront and heart of its opera- tions. We need to do this now: It is urgent and so we need to act urgently to address it. The same goes for the PET industry. Of course, here there is a clear advantage in that we have a head start, with existing collection and recycling rates of over 50% of the PET placed in the ma r ke t ( sou r ce PRE report 2020). The PET industry is actively working to promote collec- tion of its plastic packaging that are not yet collected such as trays, while the industry players are investing and adapt- ing methods and equipment technology to recycle PET trays. The PET industry is also looking deeply into relatively smaller PET applications, such as opaque white and coloured PET bottles, as well as functional PET bottles, to make sure they are not only collected but sorted into dedicated streams to be effectively recycled. This is all in place right now, and is a high priority for our industry, which is already familiar and transpar- ent with regard to recycling operations and reporting. Similar to the PET industry, our vision and strategic pillars at Sukano aim to ensure that all PET packaging placed in the market is designed for recycling, collected, sorted, and effec- tively recycled. This will help ensure its value is maintained and sustained in the next life and application the material will have. www.sukano.com