Israeli startup creates a fully compostable alternative to flexible plastic

Kaycee Enerva

Kaycee Enerva

Tipa Israel

Looking to offer a viable alternative to flexible plastic, Israeli climate-tech company, Tipa, has developed an eco-friendly, fully compostable plastic packaging.

The flexible plastic packaging industry for consumer goods is a market that is projected to reach an estimated US$200 billion by 2025. However, only 4 per cent of flexible plastic packaging gets recycled and the rest ends up in landfills.

According to the company, it aims to address the impact posed by the flexible plastic industry for consumer goods by offering not just bio-plastics but manufacturing a variety of polymers that are 100-per-cent compostable.

Founded in 2010 by entrepreneurs Daphne Nissenbaum and Tal Neuman, Tipa creates compostable packaging for fresh produce, dry food, and apparel using patented technology and a blend of compostable polymers. 

The eco-friendly films and laminates, says the company, emulate the properties and functionality of conventional plastic materials, including their durability, barrier resistance, and shelf life. In addition, the material can decompose into the soil in 180 days compared to traditional plastic, which takes 1000 years or more to biodegrade.

“Packaging should be part of a circular economy,” said the company. “Where materials produced can be reused for another valuable purpose.”

Tipa added that its packaging solution could biodegrade into nourishing compost, leaving behind the same nutrients left by organic waste. 

The company has already collaborated with several companies worldwide, including Scotch & Soda, Stella McCartney, UK supermarket chain Waitrose, and Swiss global packaging company Amcor which distributes its compostable packaging in Australia and New Zealand. 

“We are witnessing a growing enthusiasm around the world for the compostable packaging agenda and the solutions it brings,” shared Nissenbaum.

Where recycling falls short with being unable to recover flexible films and packaging contaminated with food, compostable packaging can rise and take on the challenge. We are counting on brands to recognize the consumer demand for compostable packaging.”

The company operates in a growing Israeli climate tech sector that drew more than $2.2 billion in investments over the past year. Climate tech is an umbrella term that includes technologies for clean energy, transportation, water treatment, food manufacturing, waste reduction, and supply chain improvements.

Kaycee Enerva

Kaycee Enerva

A digital content manager based in the Philippines, Kaycee Enerva has written for multiple publications over several years. A graduate of Computer Science, she exchanged a career in IT to pursue her passion for writing. She's slowly practicing sustainability through period cups, and eating more plant-based food.

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