2010
BioHub® - Glycolic Acid programme - METabolic EXplorer
Technical advances in the Glycolic Acid programme during the pre-industrial pilot phase are a further significant milestone in the creation of a new value chain.
Clermont-Ferrand, December 8th 2009. – Roquette, one of the world’s most advanced starch and starch-derivatives businesses, and METabolic EXplorer, a green chemistry company that specializes in the development of bioprocesses for the production of chemical compounds used in a wide range of everyday products,today announced further advances as part of their exclusive bio-sourced Glycolic Acid (GA) partnership as part of their BIOHUB® programme.
The competitive nature of the METabolic EXplorer bioprocess paves the way for a new, sustainable value chain for the production and sale of glycolic acid made from renewable raw materials. METabolic EXplorer has developed a strain to produce GA in large quantities in an organic process. Roquette, which is responsible for pre-industrial pilot and full-scale production of the strain, has demonstrated the effectiveness of the METabolic EXplorer process by replicating the performance of the process in a pre-industrial pilot by manufacturing batches of GA.
Glycolic acid is a chemical compound currently used in cosmetics and industrial detergents. Polymers derived from GA, such as PGA*, are used to manufacture biosourced plastics which notably offer unique gas barrier properties. This market is estimated to amount to over 500,000 metric tons in 2010 (source: Dupont News, 1 April 2008).
Jean-Bernard Leleu, Roquette’s Executive Vice-President, said: “METabolic EXplorer has taken up a full-blown technological challenge by developing an organic GA production process. Advances in our work on the pre-industrial process have demonstrated that the process is efficient. We are consequently making progress towards developing solutions for the bio-sourced plastics industry testifying to the potential for sustainable innovation in the framework of the BIOHUB® programme.”
Benjamin Gonzalez, Chairman of the METabolic EXplorer Management Board, added: “The process developed by METabolic EXplorer delivers substantial economic gains compared with the conventional, formol (formaldehyde) chemical process, which is complex and costly. This economic competitiveness with its improved environmental footprint, makes our process especially attractive both for our partners upstream and those downstream, notably for the development of highperformance bioplastics.”
* (Polyglycolic acid: a glycolic acid polymer)
About the exclusive Glycolic Acid partnership programme between METabolic EXplorer and Roquette In 2006 METabolic EXplorer signed a development agreement with Roquette, one of the world’s most advanced starch and starch-derivatives businesses, with an exclusive licensing option to industrialise its patented bioprocess and to market Glycolic Acid. The partnership is a component of the BIOHUB® cereals biorefinery programme launched and spearheaded by Roquette.
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