Italian Toy Safety Institute Conforms on Safety of Bio-on’s New PHA for Toys
100% Safe Bioplastic for Children’s Toys
The declaration of chemical conformity issued by IISG is a guarantee of safety for children's health because numerous tests have demonstrated the absence of migration from the Bio-on bioplastic of chemical or metal compounds, solvents, monomers, plasticizers, aromatic compounds, N-nitrosamines and N-nitrosatable substances. Like all the PHAs bioplastics developed by Bio-on (listed on AIM on Borsa Italiana), the special grade Minerv Supertoys is 100% natural and biodegradable.
Marco Astorri, Bio-on Chairman and CEO, explained:
“We chose to entrust our samples to IISG to run the analyses established by European Directive 2009/48/EC because it represents a center of global excellence. The declaration of conformity issued by the institute rewards the philosophy of total environmental sustainability and maximum methodological rigor in the development of innovation bioplastics that Bio-on has always stood for. What’s more we believe that Minerv Supertoys can soon help launch profoundly innovative processes in the toys sector.”
Minerv Supertoys PHA Bioplastic
Minerv Supertoys complies with all international standards in the field and exceeds the provisions of European Directive 2009/48/EC, known as the TDS (Toy Safety Directive), implemented into the standard international procedure for toy safety evaluation UNI EN 71.
Luca Giamperi, Head of Bio-on's Technological Laboratory, said:
“The development of these materials required a dedicated study and a rigorous research approach in full compliance with strict EU and USA regulations on the chemical safety of materials intended for use by children.”
Naturally Biodegradable
In addition to safety aspects, the new bioplastics market also demands guarantees in terms of product quality, origin of raw materials, sustainable ecological production, and natural and total biodegradability.
Luca Giamperi explained:
“There are many companies in the world offering products called biopolymers that in fact are not natural in origin or are not biodegradable but have only a renewable origin (such as bio PET or others. The product is put on the market as bioplastic without actually being biodegradable and being full of non-ecological substances. Minerv Supertoys overcomes these limitations by offering a certified, safe product that is totally naturally biodegradable and high-performing.”
Research Project
Minerv Supertoys is also a research project launched by Bio-on in late 2015, with the aim of demonstrating that specific, eco-sustainable and completely biodegradable formulations can be created for making toys that are safe for children and the environment, without losing out on the end product's functionality and aesthetic. The project is open to all companies around the world working on toy design and aims to create two types of bioplastic by the end of 2017: Minerv Supertoys type “R”, rigid and strong, and Minerv Supertoys type “F”, ductile and flexible.
All the PHAs bioplastics (polyhydroxyalkanoates) developed by Bio-on are made from renewable plant sources with no competition with food supply chains. They guarantee the same thermo-mechanical properties as conventional plastics with the advantage of being 100% eco-sustainable and naturally biodegradable at ambient temperature.
