Chemicals

In their July survey of 958 chemical companies, ICIS and Genomatica found that over the last year, chemical producers have experienced the same level (44%) or greater (36%) interest in sustainable chemicals from their customers. More sustainable versions of chemicals are already offered by 31% of producers, with 41% expecting to offer them within the next two years. Customers of 62% of these companies have shown interest in sustainable chemicals, particularly in personal care (53%) and packaging plastics (44%). Producers are most interested in renewable feedstocks for polymers (45%) and specialty chemicals (38%). Reducing energy use and waste is the top priority for 70% of chemical producers followed by toxic-chemical reduction or elimination for 42%, recycled raw material for 40% and use or increased use of biobased or renewable materials for 37%. Of the producers, 35% are investing in R&D of renewable feedstocks, 31% have committed to their use and 24% are already using some. Active investment and planning in renewable feedstocks was reported by 22% of producers. Among their main concerns are reliability of supply of feedstocks (58%) and their consistent quality (32%). Many users and distributors of chemicals are working with their suppliers on sustainability, with 34% already using some renewables and 30% requiring suppliers to fulfill sustainability measures. Of these companies, 75% either currently offer or expect to offer within the next two years more sustainable chemicals. Concerns include reliability of feedstock supply (43%) and its consistent quality (38%). Users and distributors are most interested in more sustainable specialty chemicals (52%) and polymers (38%), while customers are most interested in packaging plastics (52%) and engineering plastics (36%).

Source: ICIS Chemical Business

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