France: New association for vegetable-based chemistry

On January 10, 2008, the French Chemical Industry Association (UIC), the Association of Unions in the Industries of Starch Products and their derivatives (USIPA), the Industries and Agro-Resources competitiveness pole (IAR), along with the companies Rhodia and Roquette, officially launched the Association Chimie du Végétal (ACDV), of which they are the founding members.

Its purpose: To bring major economic actors together in agro-resources, chemistry and their downstream industries in order to accelerate industrial development of vegetal-based chemistry in France and in Europe.

For Pascal Barthélemy, director of external relations at Rhodia and President of the association, “ACDV is not inventing vegetal-based chemistry, as this has existed for a very long time now. Historically speaking, it is the first “industrial” chemistry, before coal, even. But by joining industrial actors in the agro-resources sector together with those in chemistry, ACDV’s purpose is to produce a new boost for innovation in this field, within the framework of agriculture and chemistry that are both responsible and sustainable!”

Already involved in vegetal-based chemistry and interested in the association’s activity, the first industrialists have already joined ACDV and have become a part of its board of directors: Arkema, ARD, BASF, Novance, Solvay, Soufflet and Toyo Ink.

ACDV’s Mission
ACDV will strive to encourage the development of biosourced chemical intermediates by:

• Representing and promoting vegetal-based chemistry
  The association will develop joint positions and arguments, intended for actors in vegetal-based chemistry, French and European public authorities, the media and NGOs, in order to encourage a context that is favorable to the development of chemistry for biosourced intermediates.
• Identifying the major stakes for the industrialists
  This involves providing assistance in directing research and development priorities and in encouraging innovation, especially with industrial biotechnology, through demonstration platforms that allude to future incorporated biorefineries.
• Setting up economic and technical intelligence
  The association is setting up an international watch and analysis unit in order to evaluate the economic and technological trends in vegetal-based chemistry throughout the world.
• Strategic thought on the actions to be carried out according to market interests
  (construction, cosmetics, automobile, aeronautics, packaging, etc.)

Workgroups are currently being formed for each one of these missions.

This association supports an objective put forth by the chemical industrialists at the time of the National Debate on the Environment, which is to introduce 15% renewable resources into supplies for chemicals by 2017.

ACDV press release (PDF-Dokument)

Contact
Valérie Lucas (Delegate General)
Association Chimie du Végétal (ACDV)
Tel.: 00 33-1-46 53 11 54
E-Mail: contact@chimieduvegetal.com

(Cf. news of 2007-12-21 and 2007-09-10.)

Source

Association Chimie du Végétal, press release, 2008-01-10.

Share