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New technologies transform waste into 100% recyclable and sustainable materials

Visitors of the XV version of Andina Pack, one of the most complete exhibitions in processing and packaging for the food and drinks industry, the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry in Latin America, learn about a new innovative process, patented by UBQ Materials, which converts unclassified domestic waste into a sustainable and fully recyclable thermoplastic.

To reduce the environmental footprint generated annually by waste, the company developed a new process in which unclassified household waste, such as food scraps, diapers and plastic wrappings, is transformed into a 100% recyclable and sustainable thermoplastic element; Converting them, without the need to separate the elements, into a beneficial material to the ecosystem.

Quantiz, an international leader in environmental assessments, found in its studies that the production of one kilogram of UBQ material, saves 11.7 kilograms of equivalent carbon dioxide emissions, which makes this material a helpful for the planets climate. "Producing a ton of UBQ is equivalent to stopping the melting of 35 m2 of Arctic ice, or cutting down 540 trees over 10 years old", according to Tato Bigio, co-founder and director of UBQ Materials.

One of the motivations of the partners of UBQ Materials is to abolish in the long term the garbage dumps in the cities of the world; in that way, solve a problem that negatively affects humanity. According to a World Bank study entitled “What a Waste”, the world produces approximately two billion tons of waste per year, a figure that is on the rise for the next 30 years, reaching three billion. Of these current two billion waste, about 12% are plastics and become a problem when they are not collected or handled properly.