CJ Cheiljedang is jumping into the global market to begin mass production of PHA biodegradable plastic, or polyhydroxyalkanoates.

Amorphous polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) produced by CJ Biomaterials, Inc., a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang, is now included in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Inventory of Effective Food Contact Substances (FCS).

CJ Biomaterials, Inc., a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang and a primary producer of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), has produced the first cosmetic jar based on their amorphous PHA technology, under the tradename, PHACT™. The cosmetic jar was developed for Banila Co. to hold its Ceramide Cleansing Balm, part of Banila Co.’s popular ‘Clean It Zero’ line of eco-friendly products. The new product is now available at CJ Olive Young’s stores across South Korea.

The CJ Bio America presents the 20th annual Farm News Ag Show will be at the Webster County Fairgrounds on Old Highway 169 south of Fort Dodge. Farm News is also welcoming CJ Bio America as the premier sponsor for the show. The partnership is one that Lantz said has been heart-warming. “CJ Bio America is a great company and very community minded,” he said. “They like to sponsor events that are good for the community. We are very pleased to have them on board.”

CJ Bio, now known as CJ Biomaterials, acquired polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) pioneer Metabolix in 2016. Earlier this year, the company’s amorphous PHA (aPHA), went into production with the startup of a new production facility in Indonesia. Designated as PHACT A100P, aPHA is the bioplastic supplier’s initial launch from a technology platform for “tunable” designer biopolymers that can also enhance other bioplastics.

South Korean food giant CJ CheilJedang Corp. announced that it has signed a license contract with Emmyon, an American biotechnology startup, to utilize Emmyon’s various patents regarding ursolic acid, at its headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul. Ursolic acid is a natural compound contained in apple skin and rosemary. Emmyon holds a number of patents for technology that uses it to improve muscle metabolism.

A government initiative was launched to establish South Korea’s biofoundry infrastructure aimed at fostering synthetic biology, which is a multidisciplinary area of research that seeks to create new biological parts, devices, and systems, or to redesign systems that are already found in nature. Bofoundry standardizes and automates the entire process of synthetic biology by combining digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and robots. The initiative was announced by Science and ICT Minister Lee Jong-ho during his visit to CJ CheilJedang’s biofoundry facility in Suwon.

By the early 2000s, the amount of plastic waste created rose more in one decade than it had in the previous four. The problem: plastic doesn’t break down. Instead, it breaks up into smaller pieces called microplastics that are almost impossible to dispose of and are small enough to enter our bodies. Thankfully, there is a solution: Instead of making non-degradable products from fossil fuel that last forever, we can make degradable products from plants and other materials that can be effectively composted or that will degrade on their own.

CJ Biomaterials, Inc., a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang, generated significant interest in its polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) technology at the 7th International Marine Debris Conference (IMDC), held September 19-23 at the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center in Busan, South Korea.

CJ BIO has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the global hotel chain Accor to begin developing hotel amenities that are made with polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), an eco-friendly biodegradable material. Through this agreement, the two companies will work together to replace single-use plastic amenities that are provided to all Accor hotel guests, which will help the hotel chain to deliver on its commitment to phase out all single-use plastic items in guest experience from its hotels by the end of 2022.