Sustainable Spotlight at K 2025: Turning Food Waste into Fully Biodegradable Plastics

Sustainable Spotlight at K 2025: Turning Food Waste into Fully Biodegradable Plastics

“Microplastics are everywhere.” This direct statement lays the groundwork for the challenge that drives Caleyda, a new-generation, biodegradable material from the Dutch company Paques Biomaterials. With rising environmental protection measures and consumer tastes turning toward sustainability, Caleyda steps up as an attractive solution—providing a natural, scalable, and sustainable alternative to traditional plastics. That breakthrough will be highlighted at K 2025, the world’s leading plastics and rubber trade fair, where material circularity and next-generation solutions come to the forefront.

At its core, Caleyda is based on polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), a class of biopolymers naturally synthesized by microbes as energy and carbon reserves. These polymers are unique in their ability to biodegrade in soil and marine environments—breaking down like cellulose or starch, without leaving behind microplastic residues. This makes PHAs, and by extension Caleyda, a promising answer to the persistent threat of plastic pollution.

“We’ve tested, piloted, and validated Caleyda through years of iteration. We’re ready to scale,” says Richard Schrama, head of business development.

Unlike earlier bioplastics that rely on crop-derived feedstocks, Caleyda utilizes waste feedstocks sourced from industrial and municipal wastewater. “PHA‑producing microbes can be found in wastewater treatment plants and selectively enriched,” explain the Paques Biomaterials team. This innovative approach not only diverts organic waste from treatment systems but also supports a circular economy by upcycling it into valuable biomaterial.

Caleyda’s development began in 2011, with extensive lab research and pilot trials spanning 2012 to 2023. A major turning point came in 2018, when a solvent‑based extraction process was introduced, improving material consistency. By 2021, a dedicated business unit—Paques Biomaterials—was established to commercialize Caleyda, and external pilots further validated its market readiness.

Scaling up PHA production poses significant challenges—from grams to kilograms, and now to industrial scale. By 2025, Paques Biomaterials aims to produce pilot batches of 25 to 100 kg, with plans to launch large‑scale manufacturing by 2027. Central to this strategy is the PHA Hub and Caleyda extraction plant in Emmen, Netherlands—part of the GECKO Project—designed to yield up to 6,000 tonnes per year of PHA.

Paques Biomaterials has crafted a hybrid value‑chain model that combines centralized extraction with decentralized PHA‑X production at wastewater facilities. This mix ensures both economies of scale and local stakeholder engagement, facilitating a modular approach that’s adaptable globally.

Market trends underscore the timeliness of Caleyda. Global PHA production currently stands at roughly 100,000 tonnes per year, with forecasts projecting growth to over 1 million tonnes by 2029. Although bioplastics are costlier than fossil-derived plastics, niche markets—such as coatings, adhesives, agricultural films, textiles, and high-value packaging—are increasingly open to paying premiums for sustainability. Emerging applications in 3D printing and ecosystem restoration further broaden its appeal.

The regulatory landscape is also a key factor. Laws like the EU’s Single-Use Plastics Directive are phasing out traditional plastics, while ESG mandates are pushing corporations toward sustainable sourcing. “The material transition shall take time,” acknowledges the team, “but the economy of scale in biobased production shall support demand across many markets.”

“We are not just offering a new material—we are offering a new system,” says João Sousa

Caleyda’s commercial strategy is multi-stage and client-focused. From early prototyping to conditional offtake agreements and proof-of-concept validation, Paques Biomaterials is nurturing partnerships with converters and brands from the outset who leads technology development. This consultative engagement fosters trust and paves the way for long-term alliances.

To guide the introduction of Caleyda, Paques Biomaterials has brought together a multidisciplinary team of application engineering, business development, quality control, analytics, and marketing. Their value proposition covers all aspects and includes not only performance, but genuine sustainability credentials and supply assurance.

The Emmen facility—GECKO PHA‑X production plant and Caleyda processing center—is expected to be up and running by 2027. Modeled as a template for scaled-up deployment, it combines wastewater feedstock treatment with downstream centralized PHA purification. Pilot production and sampling during 2025–2026 will enable domestic and foreign trials, with commercialization on a full scale by 2028.

As industry leaders, investors, and sustainability advocates convene at K 2025, Caleyda is positioned to steal the spotlight—not just with its eco-friendly credentials, but with its readiness for market delivery. Combining scientific innovation with commercial discipline, Paques Biomaterials offers more than a green material—it offers a replicable system for industrial upcycling. In an era increasingly defined by circularity, Caleyda represents a tangible pathway toward replacing single-use plastics and reshaping the materials economy.

With a solid development track record, a future-focused value chain, and a market ready for disruption, Caleyda could be one of K 2025‘s most impactful innovations. As regulations clamp down and green sourcing becomes the norm, technologies such as Caleyda will pave the way toward a genuinely circular, low-carbon future.

https://www.paquesbiomaterials.nl/

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