Over the last 60 years, around seven billion tons of plastic has been produced, according to a U.N. report, but less than 90 percent has been recycled. As the world marks Earth Day, France 24 looks at a French start up that says it has discovered an enzyme capable of breaking down plastic waste.

Biopôle Clermont-Limagne

On Earth Day, attention turns to innovative solutions addressing the global plastic waste crisis. A French biotechnology start-up, Carbios, is at the forefront of these efforts with a groundbreaking enzyme technology designed to recycle plastic waste. The company has developed an enzyme that can break down polyethylene terephthalate (PET), one of the most prevalent forms of single-use plastics, into its constituent molecules, which can then be reassembled into new plastic products. This process allows for the recycling of plastics, including colored and differently shaped plastics as well as textiles, into clear bottles without the need for adding virgin plastic derived from fossil fuels or employing chemicals and high heat.

Carbios boasts a unique capability in the recycling industry, enabling multiple rounds of recycling in a closed loop system. This innovation stands to substantially expand recyclable materials, including challenging items such as multi-layer food packaging, small cosmetic industry products, and polyester fiber, which are currently poorly recycled or not at all recyclable. A demonstrator has successfully tested this enzyme-driven process, with plans for a full-scale factory ready by 2025. This facility is expected to handle an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes of plastic.

Despite the promising technology, some NGOs argue that the focus on recycling innovations diverts attention from the underlying issue of global plastic dependency. They advocate for systemic changes towards reuse solutions and zero-waste models rather than creating more industrial recycling processes. Meanwhile, the importance of addressing plastic waste grows in urgency as estimates from the OECD project that global plastic production will rise to 1.2 billion tonnes annually by 2060, up from the current 450 million tonnes.

Carbios' enzyme-based recycling method has garnered interest from major entities in the plastics industry, including Nestlé Waters, Pepsi, and L'Oréal, the latter being one of the start-up's principal shareholders. This collaboration reflects a broader search for viable ways to mitigate the environmental impact of plastic waste and move towards a more sustainable model of plastic use and recycling.



Start-up using enzymes to break down and recycle plastic

A plastic bottle turned into fabric, recycled into another piece of clothing and transformed again into a new container. French biotechnology start-up Carbios says it can do what nobody else can, several rounds of recycling in a closed loop. This is our raw material. As you can see there's coloured plastic that comes in different shapes. We also have textiles. And all of that can be transformed into a single end product, a clear bottle. We can do that without adding virgin plastic made from fossil fuels. No chemicals nor high heat are needed here, but an enzyme, a protein capable of breaking down polyethylene, also called PET, one of the most common single-use plastics. I'm pouring the pellets into the water, now I'm putting the enzyme in the reactor and the reaction will start. The company claims that the enzyme can successfully degrade polyethylene in just 24 hours. The enzyme's job is to decompose polyethylene chains, which are made of two separate molecules. The enzyme will break them apart and we can reassemble them to make plastic. The process has also been tested in this demonstrator, but a full-scale factory will be operational by 2025, with an annual capacity of 50,000 tonnes of plastic. But Carbios says its real potential lies elsewhere. Carbios can recycle materials nobody else can, like multi-layer food packaging, small items used in the cosmetics industry, or polyester fibre, which are all poorly recycled, or not recycled at all. The technology has drawn the interest of major plastic polluters, including Nestlé Waters, Pepsi and L'Oréal, one of the start-up's main shareholders. But for NGOs, the promise of endless recycling is a distraction from the real issue, the world's addiction to plastics. Why do we need to invent new industrial processes instead of questioning our model? And that means investing massively in reuse solutions, in zero-waste grocery shopping, and building a model where we don't create waste. According to OECD estimates, the world already churns out 450 million tonnes of plastic per year, a figure set to triple to 1.2 billion by 2060.

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