Dubai: A new UAE-based company has gained exclusive distribution rights to provide oxo-biodegradable bags to retailers throughout the country.
Eco-polymers, recently established in both Dubai and Sharjah, has signed a contract with British company Symphony Environmental to distribute its range of d2w plastic additives. It will also build a factory to produce large amounts of the product to meet growing demand in the Middle East.
The venture was officially launched yesterday in the presence of Dr Rashid Ahmad Bin Fahad, the Minister of Environment and Water, alongside other dignitaries and under the sponsorship of Dubai Municipality, Al Safeer Group, Aswaaq, Emirates Environmental Group, Marks and Spencer and Fujairah Plastics.
Bin Fahad said: "The government is very keen to protect the environment of the UAE and Dubai Municipality is doing its best to implement its strategic goals. I encourage the usage of this new technology as it will spirit a new culture [of responsibility] and help preserve the UAE's environment for future generations."
Oxo-biodegradable bags degrade completely - regardless of location or environmental conditions, and have a pre-programmed lifespan. They are injected with a small amount of an additive called d2w.
The additive creates a chemical reaction whereby the additive attacks the carbon-carbon bonds in the material. This leads to a lowering of the molecular weight and eventually to a loss of strength and other properties.
Unlike normal plastic bags, which take around 1,000 years to biodegrade, oxo-biodegradable carriers disintegrate into nothing more than water, carbon dioxide and a very small amount of biomass.
Nirj Diva, Chairman of Symphony Environmental and a Member of the European Parliament, said: "A solution has been found to combat the curse of plastic pollution. We now have the technology required to convert all plastic bags and film to oxo-biodegradable.
"We do not inherit the planet from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children. We need to take action now or our lasting legacy for our great, great grandchildren will be mounds of rubbish and filth."
Sharjah Cooperative became the first UAE supermarket to start using oxo-biodegradable bags in April and Abu Dhabi Cooperative started using the carriers yesterday. Gulf News understands several other large UAE-based supermarkets are also considering following suit.
Winston Pryce, General Manager of Eco-polymers, said: "We are delighted to have entered into this contract and now look forward to working closely with Symphony, all factories, end users and other concerned parties to ensure that d2w oxo-biodegradable additives become the products of choice in our collective effort to solve the plastic pollution problem in the UAE."
In the last 12 months it is estimated more than five billion plastic products have been made with Symphony's d2w pro-degradant additives and they can already be found in over 60 countries.
