Commercialization Agreement for Biodegradable Eco-Friendly Sanitary Products
Existing Sanitary Items and Daily Contaminants on the Rise
Contributing to Solutions with PBAT and Biodegradable Limeks
SKC's biodegradable material business investor SK Livio is partnering with Korea's comprehensive paper manufacturer KleanNara to launch a new biodegradable wet tissue product within the third quarter of this year.
SK Livio announced on the 24th that it recently signed a 'Commercialization Agreement for Biodegradable Eco-friendly Hygiene Products' with KleanNara and KleanNara's subsidiary Bonoa. The signing ceremony, held the previous day at SKC headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, was attended by key representatives including Yang Hojin, CEO of SK Livio, Choi Hyunsoo, CEO of KleanNara, and Kim Yongil, CEO of Bonoa.
SK Livio and KleanNara plan to jointly develop and commercialize various hygiene products based on PBAT (Polybutylene Adipate Terephthalate), which decomposes naturally, and biodegradable LIMEX materials. They will also pursue separate joint research to develop a circular system model from production to disposal.
On the 23rd, at the SKC headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, Yang Hojin, CEO of SK Livio (from the left), Choi Hyunsoo, CEO of Clean Nara, and Kim Yongil, CEO of Bonoa, are holding up the agreement after signing a "Business Agreement for the Development of Eco-friendly Biodegradable Hygiene Products." [Photo by SKC]
The first collaborative item between the two companies is wet tissues commonly used in daily life. Unlike regular tissue paper made from paper, conventional wet tissues are made from blended fabrics containing plastic materials such as polyester. According to the Ministry of Environment, the total amount of wet tissues used annually in households and restaurants reaches 1.6 million tons. Due to the characteristics of polyester, these tissues do not decompose well even when landfilled and can emit harmful substances when incinerated, making them a recognized source of everyday pollution.
SK Livio and KleanNara are preparing eco-friendly products to address these issues. They plan to launch a new high-strength PBAT and biodegradable LIMEX-based wet tissue product within the third quarter of this year, maintaining the strength and price competitiveness of existing polyester wet tissues while ensuring natural decomposition.
Furthermore, they intend to expand their collaboration to productize biodegradable material-based diapers and feminine hygiene products, which can cause similar environmental problems due to the use of plastic vinyl or nonwoven fabrics.
SK Livio will begin construction of a PBAT production plant in Haiphong City, Vietnam, with an annual capacity of 70,000 tons, the largest single factory in the world, during the first half of this year. The production facility of SK TBMG Ostone, an investor in SKC's biodegradable LIMEX material business, will also be established there to create synergy.
An SK Livio official stated, "Through cooperation with KleanNara, the utilization of biodegradable materials has rapidly expanded into hygiene products widely used in daily life. We will continue to mass-produce high value-added biodegradable material products for various applications."
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