Gruppo Boero, Italian leader in painting products, and IIT - Italian Institute of Technology, have signed an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement for the development and marketing of eco-friendly paint products that employ bioplastic micro-particles deriving from fruit and vegetable waste.
The agreement is the result of the collaboration between the two companies, started two years ago with the Green Paints project, aimed at producing painting more eco-sustainable products.
The patent developed in the IIT laboratory of Smart Materials (led by Athanassia Athanassiou) seems to have a wide potential for application. Concretely, 100g of bioplastic derived from dried plant residue (from the processing of the food industry) are needed to make 1 kg of coating product. As for one kilo of product, the peels of three oranges will be necessary.
Actually, cornstarch, cocoa and orange peel will be the basis of the new raw materials used by Gruppo Boero for this new eco-friendly line.
As part of the agreement, within 24 months, the company is providing IIT a development plan, detailing the activities that will allow the products covered by the license to be brought onto the market.
