Texas firm wins grant to develop EA-free resins

AUSTIN, TEXAS (Oct. 29, 4:15 p.m. ET) -- PlastiPure Inc., which makes chemicals that companies can use to make bottles and containers that are free from estrogen-activity, has received a $1.1 million federal grant to develop new chemical formulations.

“We will be developing several polyolefins, polyethylenes, polypropylenes and additives that are free of estrogen activity,” said CEO Mike Usey in an Oct. 29 phone interview.

Usey also said PlastiPure would use the funding to develop, with its partners, additional colorants, clarifiers, antistatic agents and antioxidants that are free of estrogen activity.

“This funding validates our innovative technology and will allow us to expand our development of PlastiPure-Safe materials,” he said.

The Austin, Texas, company, which was founded in 2000 and began selling commercial products and resins last year, has also raised $2 million in funding from private investors.

PlastiPure products are certified to be free of estrogen activity by Austin-based CertiChem Inc.

The grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences was announced Oct. 27, just two months after PlastiPure introduced — with cycling water bottle specialist Hydrapak LLC of Oakland, Calif. — the Purebot water bottle, a plastic reusable water bottle certified as free from estrogenic activity.

Estrogen activity, associated with chemicals such as phthalates and bisphenol A, has been linked to possible birth defects, low birth weights, reproductive cancers, early puberty and behavioral and learning disorders.

BPA and phthalates are considered the most common endocrine disruptors. The American Chemistry Council and chemical manufacturers have argued that the levels of BPA exposure, for example, are not harmful to health, and 11 safety agencies around the world have said that BPA is safe for use in food contact applications.

The Food and Drug Administration is currently reviewing BPA safety and said it will decide by Nov. 30 whether it needs to change its long-held stance that there is not enough data to support a ban on the use of BPA in food packaging — in particular, baby bottles.

“We are looking to get more products out there,” Usey said. “The consumer focus has been on BPA and phthalates, but those are just two of the hundreds of chemicals that have estrogen activity. So just getting rid of those two doesn’t help that much.”

“We are a strong supporter of the plastics industry, and we believe that plastics are an integral part of modern society,” Usey said. “But we believe that there is a way to make plastic products safer and at a cost that is essentially the same. We believe that consumers will quickly embrace a safer plastic product. We want them to buy plastic products — not glass and stainless steel products.”

BPA can also be present in other products. Sigg USA admitted in August that BPA was present in the aluminum liners of its reusable metal bottles that have been touted as an alternative to BPA.

In addition to making the resin used in Purebot water bottles, PlastiPure makes the resin for 4-32 ounces bottles used for several premium soaps, shampoos, lotions and skin care products sold at supermarkets such as Whole Foods Market.

The products include the Sacred Sassy Soap line from Benedetta, based in Petaluma, Calif., the organic baby product line of shampoos, oils and lotions from Lafe’s Natural Body Care in Austin, and the organic Peter Rabbit line of personal skin care products from EcoNatura Inc. in Deer Park, N.Y. “Those are the main retail products right now,” Usey said.

But Usey added that PlastiPure has partnered with a manufacturer and will launch an estrogen activity-free baby bottle in the next three months, and EA-free plastic bags, food storage containers and can liners in the next six months. Usey also said the company will announce a distribution deal before the end of the year.

“Our markets are highly sensitive products where consumers demand more safety — baby bottles, water bottles, food packaging, cosmetics packaging and medical devices,” Usey said. “The main focus we have right now is to educate consumers, find retail partners and get some sexy, safe products out into the marketplace.”

“In the next 18 months, we want to have a breakthrough bottle — either a highly visible baby bottle or a food packaging application,” Usey said. “That will break this market open.”

Usey said the company’s biggest challenge isn’t developing chemical formulations or finding product applications, but consumer awareness and education.

“The biggest challenge we have from a business perspective is consumer awareness,” he said. “There is a lot of confusion around plastics and people sometimes are afraid of the wrong thing. Our products give consumers the option to buy safer products at the same price. We are competitively priced with BPA-free products, but we also are free of estrogen activity, and we need to let people know that.”

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