Araymond's BIO clips are certified as EN 13432 guaranteeing biocompostability in industrial composting conditions.
In line with this objective, Bayer CropScience together with Novamont have carried out a yearlong experimental trial in Spanish greenhouses to prove that using BIO twine and clips contributes to solving the problem of the end-of-life of waste products in agricultural crops.
For this research 180.000 units of EASY 26 mm BIO Clip, produced using Novamont's compostable Mater-Bi, has been used and has fulfilled all requirements for strength, resistance and flexibility over the entire crop cycle under the most extreme climatic conditions in the area of El Ejido (South of Spain). The manufacturing process of the Easy 26 mm BIO Clip was adapted in such a way as to achieve the highest standards for the trial giving better quality and functionality of the clip.
At the end of the crop cycle, the twine and clips were collected with plant waste and processed in an industrial composting plant run by SACh (Servicios Ambientales Las Chozas – a company that manages and processes agricultural waste in composting facilities), producing a high-quality compost. The new compostable items helped to simplify and increase the efficiency of managing plant waste, which can be composted without needing to separate out plastic materials. This also avoids the accidental build-up of non-compostable plastics in the soil.
Easy 26 BIO Clip has proven a fastening solutions on the market today, thanks to its special guide integrated into the hinge eases the positioning of the twine to confirm it is in place. It's 7 grips optimize twine retention and the diameter, and the sturdy locking system ensure it can support large-scale tomato, cucumber, pepper and even melon crops without damaging the plant's branches during the growth period. The clip supported tomato trees that reached 20 kg of weight giving the perfect support to avoid any kind of falling or tomato's damage.
Our Clip 26 BIO gave a perfect answer to Bayer CropScience's demands in terms of quality, installation time, flexibility, and resistance during all year trial, satisfying one of the most important growers demands: saving on labor costs and avoiding separate the clip from the plant at the end of the crop cycle.
Following European Union suggestions, external control to ensure BIO compostability is key, and all our BIO range has the TUV AUSTRIA certification EN13432, OK COMPOST INDUSTRIAL complying with the requirements EU packaging Directive (92/62/EEC).
Thanks to this certification, the company can ensure compostability of their clips, and their growers can move plant waste and clips from their greenhouses to compostable plant for a composting process without any doubt about degradation of the clips.
Alejandro Caravaca, Head EMEA Veg R&D Sustainability and Outreach for Bayer CropScience declared: "At Bayer CropScience, a company committed to agricultural innovation, we looked for alternatives to the traditional plastics used in our experimental fields. Our goal was to find innovative solutions to promote the more sustainable management of the end-of-life of waste products in agricultural crops. We found the solution in the biodegradable and compostable items made from Novamont's Mater-Bi material, which we trialled with various crops over a whole year on over 80 hectares, with excellent results".
Marco Pecchiari, Novamont Head of Ecology of Product and Environmental Communication stated: "Mater-Bi, developed through over 30 years of research and innovation at Novamont, is constantly evolving to achieve greater sustainability and circularity, in order to ensure the ever more efficient use of renewable resources thanks to an increasingly integrated, wholly European sector. We are proud that our agricultural solutions are deemed suitable by such an important company as Bayer CropScience. And that we can help farmers to improve the sustainability of their production cycles and contribute to guaranteeing soil quality,".
For more information:
ARaymond
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www.araymond-agriculture.com