Biofoam box project provides eco seafood storage

While some greener, recyclable packaging options have been introduced to store and transport WA seafood, a new local WA project is looking to move packaging from recyclable to fully biodegradable.

The WA seafood industry brings in around $1 billion of revenue each year. Expanded polystyrene boxes have historically been used to transport seafood; however, these have now been banned in WA and are being phased out globally.

The Bioplastics Innovation Hub (BIH), a joint venture between Murdoch University and CSIRO, has partnered with Cass Materials, a Perth biotechnology company, to develop biofoam seafood boxes made from wheat straw.

“In WA, approximately 10 million tonnes of wheat straw per year is retained on the farm and, with no tillage systems, most is burnt,” said Cass Materials CEO Gary Cass. “With the Bioplastics Innovation Hub, we can convert this agricultural waste into new fossil-free biofoam boxes for fresh food and seafood markets.”

Traditional polystyrene boxes take more than 500 years to decompose in landfill, and form microplastics as they break down. A recent review by Murdoch University discovered that agricultural soils now hold around 23 times more microplastics than oceans.

The researchers said the developed biofoam boxes will fully break down within a few months and improve the organic matter content of soils. The boxes are also lightweight, hydrophobic (able to retain ice and water) and home compostable.

BIH director Professor Dan Murphy said, “We want to improve single use items in the food industry by having biodegradable and compostable materials that replace things like synthetic plastics.”

The biofoam boxes are currently at TRL4, meaning the laboratory prototypes have been validated. Cass Materials is currently raising capital to scale this technology. In preparation for this upscale, BIH researchers are working to develop the entirely waterproof barrier needed to meet final requirements.

“We are confident that upon scaling-up this product, it will become a commercial success and meet the consumer and industry demand for convenient and environmentally friendly packaging,” Murphy said.

Cass said there was an increase in demand from consumers for greener products, and that it was imperative for industry to make products that were both green and economically viable.

“Consumers are becoming more aware of the damage that fossil-based plastics are doing to our environment,” he said. “With this awareness, they are seeking out these sustainable alternatives.”

Image credit: iStock.com/Ben Pong