Introduction
World Environment Day 2023 focuses on solutions to plastic pollution.
Cipher's internal sustainability classifiers were used to explore the key players contributing to sustainable plastic innovation in the 21st century
The technology areas covered in this analysis include:
-
Bio-degradable polymers
- Bio-based polymers
- Sustainable adhesives.
21st Century Evolution Of Sustainable Plastic Technology Trends
Which companies are leading the race?
The leading owners and innovators in sustainable plastic technologies over the last 23 years have been predominantly Japanese chemical, and pulp and paper companies.
The rise of
To emphasise LG's meteoric rise, they ranked at 90th in 2000 with only 15 active families, compared to 234 in 2023 – an increase of 1460%.
In 2023 alone, LG accounts for 17% of total publications in sustainable plastics, followed by
All this movement points towards a dynamic and evolving landscape.
21st Century Evolution Of Sustainable Plastic Technology Trends
Patent owners with a lessening impact
In fact, its active patent portfolio has shrunk by 65% when comparing its peak in 2006 to 2023. The dip in the rate of publications since 2012 reinforces this. Mitsui has only published 77 patent families between 2012 and 2023, compared to 261 published families from 2000 – 2011.
The overall number of active patent families increased rapidly from 2000 to 2009 but has remained stagnant since then. Even with the implementation of the
Analysing the micro-trends
A deeper look at the micro trends paints a different picture.
Although the landscape has stagnated around 10,000 – 11,000 active families since 2004, the ownership holding of the top 10 owners has significantly reduced, making it a more distributed landscape.
In every year since 2000, the dominance of the top 10 owners has gradually reduced – from 21% at the start of the period to 14% in 2023.
From this we can take that innovation is currently being driven by a greater pool of smaller organisations – highlighting the growing importance of switching to sustainable plastic alternatives globally.
21st Century Evolution of Sustainable Plastic Technology Trends
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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