The objective of NEWPACK is to validate in industrial setting the production of at least two new bio-plastics based on PHB- PLA blends with improved sustainability performance, obtained by the addition of natural extracts with antioxidant/antibacterial properties and nanoadditives from cellulose and chitin. A new circular economy value chain will be generated from agro-food wastes that will be exploited for the production of PHB, while designing and validating the process up to pilot scale. Blending of PLA and PHB will be validated at pilot scale to achieve specific final product requirements based on targeted products. New bioplastic properties and functionalities will be achieved through incorporation of nanocellulose or nanochitin additives (to improve typical problems of processability and mechanical properties of PLA-PHB), antioxidant and antimicrobial additives. The ability to extend the functionalities will be validated in real industrial environments. NEWPACK activities are underpinned by the prior experience and results (already validated at TRL 3-4) of the partners in order to achieve advanced TRLs (5-6) for the developed technologies, including PHB production from agro-food waste; co-blending of PHB with PLA; nanocellulose extraction from wheat straw and incorporation into PHB-PLA blends and encapsulation of natural antioxidants/antimicrobials for addition to PHB-PLA. Great emphasis will be on assessing technical and economic feasibility of the processes; demonstrating the biodegradability of solutions; ensuring the compliance to the market and regulatory requirements; LCA evaluation; preparing for future scale-up of the processes to achieve a pre-industrial production and identification of stakeholders perceptions, attitudes and expectations towards bioplastics. The NEWPACK consortium has 12 partners with academic research organizations and small and large industries which cover the whole innovation, production and final use value chain.

Only in the EU, we generate every year around 89M tonnes of Food Loss and Waste (FLW), accounting for 20% of the total food produced, with costs estimated at ?143 Bn, impacting each stage of the Food Value Chain. In SISTERS, we propose a set of systemic innovations addressed to reduce FLW generated in every stage of the Food Value Chain in Europe that will solve main existing challenges in Production, Processing, Marketing (retailing/wholesaling), Consumption, and the Logistics among stages. SISTERS will design the 1st European Short Chain Platform for farmers to sell their discarded production, favouring local economies, providing access to nutritious and healthy food to the less favoured consumers. Smart and reusable food containers will be designed to diminish food losses during transportation, maintain bulk and packed food in ideal conditions with new accurate sensors allowing immediate reaction. Moreover, to improve the preservation and quality of food a set of bio-based and home-compostable packaging solutions will be created reducing their potential negative impacts in the environment. A novel SISTERS Seal of Excellence will promote sustainable practices among retailers. While the information provided to the consumers with QR and dynamic labelling incorporated in the packaging is expected to impact on retailers and consumers sustainable awareness, thus reducing the discard of food and associated FW. With these cross-sectorial innovations, we will achieve an ambitious environmental & economic impact of the current dynamics in the food system, contributing to the reduction of FLW and to change the unsustainable consumer behaviours. With the support of the EC, SISTERS will be a key EU project addressing the problem in a holistic way, reducing FLW by 27.4% and CO2 emissions by around 20% in the case studies. Our interdisciplinary SISTERS consortium consists of 18 partners from 8 European countries, with wide expertise in fighting FLW from Farm