INTERVIEW Alternative Proteins Magazine April 2024 29 Norbite has created, controlled and protected a process using a specific insect, Galleria mellonella, whose digestive activities enable it to convert plastic waste into proteins and lipids. Norbite's disruptive approach offers a new economic reality for the endof-life polymeric materials for which there are no viable re-use or recycling solutions to-date. Proteins and lipids are to be used in feed/food industry or for industrial applications. It is probably worth reminding that mass production of plastics started in the first half of the last century. Plastics are synthetic molecules mostly derived from fossil fuels and highly resistant to degradation. The production of these new materials has burst over the past 70 years. They entered compellingly into our daily life, bringing a revolution to our society and a new way of living. Plastic and polymeric materials became essential materials in many fields, such as packaging, textile, and furniture. In the past 40 years the production of those materials has increased exponentially. However, this revolution came with a price. This massive usage of synthetic polymers generates the accumulation of millions of tons of plastic waste. Breaking down plastic is not easy as it has long, difficult-to-break hydrocarbon chains. The same property that makes plastic such a widely used material, ironically, also turns against it, when talking about sustainable handling of its end-of-life. On the global scale, only 9% of plastic is recycled. Around 12% goes to incineration, 22% is mismanaged and the rest ends in landfills and in our oceans. In Sweden 1,2 million tons of plastic burn every year. During incineration for each and every kilogram of plastic 2,5 kg of CO2 equivalent is released in our atmosphere, while our proprietary process reduces CO2 emission by 67%. On the other hand, the world’s population is growing and food requirements are growing with it. According to the United Nation, 690 million people are suffering hunger, that is 8.9 percent of the world’s population. The total is expected to increase by 10 million people in one year and 60 million in five years. If nothing changes, the world will fall far short of the United Nations’s goal to reach zero hunger by 2030. We know that plastic waste is a big problem for the environment. But you say that it can be converted via insects. This is a noteworthy idea but how can we convert plastic waste via insects? Could you explain it to us? Yes, a step from plastics to proteins might look too long, unrealistic, or even too good be true but it is real. Plastic structure is similar to the chemical structure of beeswax and yet the only living species that are able to digest it are Greater Wax moths, Galleria mellonella, the insects we are working with. Eggs Adult Pupae Larvae Food Feed Organic farming... Land use 14 times Methane emissions 28,8 times Energy 40% GWP 8,5 times Water >90% Packaging Textile Furniture ... >90% common plastics Carbon dioxide 67% Inspired by Nature & Scientifically Proven
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjkxNQ==