The economic crisis for Covid-19 has not stopped the growth of the bioplastics sector in Italy.
In 2020, total turnover grew by 9.4% compared to 2019, volumes produced by 9.6%, employees by 4.7%.
The growth was driven above all by disposables (plates, tableware, coffee capsules), which grew by 116%.
This is the picture drawn by the 7 / o annual report of Assobioplastica, the association of companies in the sector, which this year celebrates its tenth anniversary.
In Italy there are 278 companies that produce bioplastics, with 2,775 dedicated employees, over 110,000 tons of compostable products produced in 2020 and a total turnover last year of 815 million euros.
Shoppers (disposable bags for take-away goods) amounted to around 58,000 tons (+ 2.7% on 2019), despite the permanence on the market of illegal bags. The ultralight bags for fruit and vegetables showed a slight contraction (-2.9%). The agricultural film (mulch biofilms) confirmed the positive trend, with about + 5%, a sign of the growing attention of the agricultural sector to the environment. Packaging films (food and non-food) have shown particular vivacity, with growth rates close to + 20%. However, there was a boom in compostable disposable items, which registered a + 116%. The wet waste bag sector was also positive (+ 3.5% approximately).