Press Release

The world's leading pyrotechnics producer and provider of professional fireworks, Grucci, is now using CAMM material for its fireworks. The Grucci Group and greentech innovator Camm Solutions have agreed on an exclusive partnership that will change the global fireworks industry forever.

The Grucci Group companies, Fireworks for Grucci and Pyrotechnique by Grucci, are now focussing on sustainability when it comes to plastic components in fireworks. The CAMM material replaces the plastic previously used. "This will make a huge contribution to reducing plastic in the environment," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. In view of the 3,500 tonnes of plastic emitted by fireworks every year in Germany alone, the partnership is intended to bring about a fundamental change. Unlike conventional plastic, the CAMM material dissolves in water without leaving any residue and biodegrades completely in the environment. CAMM is free of microplastics, non-toxic and contains no everlasting chemicals.

The New York-based company Grucci is one of the best-known providers of professional fireworks worldwide and holds the world record for the largest fireworks display. Grucci organises fireworks displays worldwide for Olympic Games opening ceremonies, US presidential inaugurations and national holidays. The traditional family business, now in its sixth generation, sets standards for the entire industry.

Camm Solutions and Grucci have signed a five-year contract with an option to extend and have agreed worldwide exclusivity. "The cooperation relates in particular to the professional fireworks business," says Bergstein. "In addition, an agreed minimum quantity will be purchased for the huge US end consumer market." In addition to supplying the raw material, Camm Solutions will also provide training in handling the CAMM material and in further processing on site at Grucci.

"Our mission is to work with industry leaders to develop sustainable solutions and implement them across the industry," says Bergstein. "Together with Grucci, we can achieve a global impact in this area." At the same time, the two companies are working to offer the sustainable solution to other companies in the industry.

"Our partnership is set for growth to supply our fireworks company and the industry as a whole. We are excited to leverage our six generations of experience generations and our global presence to lead the industry towards sustainability. At the same time, we want to continue our family's business philosophy of innovation, design, safety and art in the professional fireworks industry," says Grucci CEO Phil Grucci.

About Grucci

The Grucci group of companies includes Fireworks by Grucci, founded in 1850, a sixth generation manufacturer of pyrotechnics and multimedia special effects that produces artistic displays of pyrotechnics and multimedia special effects worldwide. An industry leader with an affinity for design, innovation and cutting-edge technology, Grucci has achieved eleven Guinness World Records. Pyrotechnique by Grucci, an ISO 9001-2015 certified quality system, is a manufacturer of pyrotechnics and explosives for the entertainment industry as well as ammunition components and pyrotechnic training devices for the US Department of Defence. Phil Grucci, fifth generation CEO, pursues a vision of sustainability, quality and safety in both the entertainment and manufacturing sectors.

Press Release

While progress is being made on climate financing at the current UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, reaching an agreement on a global anti-plastics treaty is proving more challenging than expected. In Europe, on the other hand, progress has been made in this area: according to EU plans, reusable systems are to be strengthened and plastic waste exports curbed. "It is encouraging that Europe is making progress in the fight against plastic," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "The most important thing is that the decision in favour of the right solutions is made in an impact-oriented manner and the right incentives are set.”

The third session of the UN negotiating committee, aimed at establishing binding rules to prevent plastic pollution, concluded in mid-November without significant progress. The goal is to reach an agreement covering the entire lifecycle of plastics, from quantity, materials, and design to recycling. However, the latest meeting in Nairobi made little to no progress, with oil-producing nations such as Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Iran reportedly stalling further advancements. Two more meetings are scheduled for next year. "We remain hopeful that the agreement can be adopted as planned by 2025," Bergstein remarks. "A clear framework on a global level is needed, one that also allows for innovative solutions and creative entrepreneurship."

Conventional plastics produce microplastics and toxins, while other materials like CAMM are designed to be fully sustainable, offering responsible degradation and recycling scenarios for all conceivable applications. "This is what policies should focus on," Bergstein advises. "Not incremental change, but a paradigm shift that supports real sustainability is needed."

The European Parliament is applying pressure in the fight against plastics, having voted for a law aiming to reduce the amount of plastic packaging by 20% by 2040 compared to 2018 levels. This includes a ban on lightweight plastic bags and enhancing the appeal of reusable systems over recycling. For the law to come into effect, however, a consensus between the EU Parliament and member states is still required.

Both parties have already agreed on a significant restriction on exporting plastic waste to non-OECD countries, set to take effect in 2026. "Europe's move away from exporting its plastic problem to developing countries is commendable," says Bergstein. For exports to OECD countries, stricter regulations will apply, provided the importers handle the waste responsibly.

"This regulation marks progress from the status quo," Bergstein comments. However, there are concerns that, due to incomplete controls, plastics may continue to cross borders illegally. "Ultimately, a comprehensive ban, especially on environmentally harmful plastics within the bounds of technical feasibility, would be the better option," Bergstein suggests. Sustainable solutions that permanently relieve the environment are already available on the market and can match the properties of conventional plastics, like CAMM, which is made from renewable materials such as organic waste, is water-soluble, biodegradable, compostable, and enables an environmentally friendly recycling process without leaving harmful residues like microplastics, toxins, or persistent chemicals.

Press Release

The United Nations is working flat out to combat plastic. Negotiations are currently underway to create a legally binding framework to combat plastic pollution. The treaty is expected to be adopted by the end of next year. "It can help reduce global plastic pollution," said Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "For this to succeed, the UN member states must set legally binding, global targets, rules and obligations for all stakeholders and harmonise regulatory standards and measures in the various markets. However, there must also be sufficient room for manoeuvre for creative, entrepreneurial action to help solve the problem.”

The United Nations has declared war on plastic. In March 2022, the UN Environment Assembly adopted a historic resolution to develop an international legally binding instrument to combat plastic pollution - covering the entire life cycle of plastics, from source to sea. Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), described the agreement as the most important international multilateral environmental agreement since the Paris Climate Agreement.

An intergovernmental negotiating committee has been tasked with drafting the anti-plastics instrument. The committee held its first meeting in Paris at the end of 2022; the third meeting is currently underway at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi. In their negotiations, the member states must take into account the different types of plastics and the additives they contain, in particular to enable the safe recycling of plastics and promote a circular economy for plastics.

According to UNEP, in a business-as-usual scenario, the amount of plastic waste entering oceanic ecosystems could triple by 2040 without further action. Microplastics and toxins in the food chain jeopardise the health of all living creatures. "Many countries have already taken national measures against plastic," says Bergstein, "but a global framework is needed to tackle the entire life cycle of plastics. International cooperation is essential to effectively combat the plastic crisis." A swift transition from goal setting to action is important. The treaty must be fully implementable and operationalisable for the various industries and stakeholders from the outset.

According to UNEP, innovations are needed to replace plastic and develop new value chains in order to solve the problem. "Our fully sustainable, commercially viable material solution CAMM can make a contribution to this," says Bergstein. CAMM can be made from renewable materials such as biowaste, is water-soluble, biodegradable and compostable and enables an environmentally friendly recycling process without leaving behind harmful residues such as microplastics, toxins or eternal chemicals. "Our practical solution has already attracted solution attracted a great deal of attention at the Vienna Climate Forum of the UN Industrial Development Organisation at the beginning of November," says Bergstein. "Many representatives of member states told us how challenging plastic waste is and were surprised at how easily we can solve this problem with CAMM. It also showed us the potential to drive global partnerships that open up access to raw materials, such as waste products from the agricultural industry, and contribute to value creation in Asia, Africa and Latin America.”

Frankfurter Rundschau

Das Start-up CammSolutions will die Verpackungsindustrie revolutionieren, um den Plastikmüll weltweit zu reduzieren.

Plastik hat ein schlechtes Image, spätestens seitdem vor ein paar Jahren die Bilder der gigantischen Strudel aus Kunststoffmüll auf den Weltmeeren durch die Medien gingen. Umweltverschmutzung, Ressourcen-Raubbau, Verseuchung mit Mikroplastik, Treiber für den Treibhauseffekt – das sind die Problemfelder. Auf der anderen Seite will und kann fast niemand auf Plastik verzichten, weil es so praktisch ist. Seit Jahren wird daher an Lösungen geforscht. Ein neuartiges Material, „Camm“ genannt, verspricht nun Fortschritte bei der „Plastikwende“, vor allem im Verpackungsbereich.

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Press Release

Camm Solutions' appearance at the Energy and Climate Forum in Vienna was a complete success: "For both sides," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. The company was able to demonstrate to participants from all over the world how conventional plastic can be replaced sustainably. "For us, in turn, the forum opened up new perspectives on how we can expand and scale our ecosystem internationally," explains Bergstein.

The International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum at the beginning of November was organised by UNIDO, the UN Industrial Development Organisation, among others. Two weeks before the UN Climate Change Conference COP 28 in Dubai, practical solutions for the numerous environmental problems were to be presented to an international audience of decision-makers and experts in Vienna - including the fully sustainable, commercially usable material solution CAMM. It goes beyond conventional plastics: CAMM can be made from renewable materials such as organic waste, is water-soluble, biodegradable and compostable and enables an environmentally friendly recycling process without leaving behind harmful residues such as microplastics, toxins or everlasting chemicals.

"We were particularly pleased that the head of UNIDO and former Development Minister Dr Gerd Müller was enthusiastic about our solution," says Bergstein. But it wasn't just the technology and material properties of the CAMM material that caused a stir in Vienna. "What particularly surprised our discussion partners from companies, governments and NGOs was that we have already industrialised our product," explains Bergstein. There are many good ideas, but only a few have reached large-scale production and market maturity.

For Camm Solutions, the numerous international contacts with companies and politicians from UNIDO member countries are now valuable. "They will help us to drive forward the scaling of our production beyond Europe and the US," Bergstein is convinced. In Europe, the CAMM ecosystem has been finalised and can now be scaled as a licensing model.

In the wake of the conference, new opportunities are emerging to establish green raw

material cycles with waste products from agriculture. The partnership with Camm Solutions can open up a way for countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America to create sustainable industries and thus added value. At the same time, it will help the partner countries to tackle the flood of plastic: "For many of our dialogue partners in Vienna, the waste problem, especially plastic bags and composite packaging that end up in nature, was a huge problem that we can tackle together with our sustainable material," says Bergstein.

Press Release

Camm Solutions is taking part in the International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum at the beginning of November. The event was hosted by UNIDO, the UN Industrial Development Organisation. "UNIDO is looking for solutions that are both global and sustainable - and we offer one such solution," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "We see the invitation to Vienna as great recognition of our work, our products and our strategy.”

UNIDO supports developing countries in building a sustainable and environmentally friendly economic structure. Since the end of 2021, it has been led by Dr Gerd Müller, the former German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development. He has set himself the goal of developing UNIDO into a global platform for technology transfer, expertise and digitalisation. In close cooperation with other UN agencies, governments, development banks, companies and investors, the aim is to strengthen green skills and technologies and enable fair access to global markets and value chains.

"This makes UNIDO and Camm Solutions perfect partners," says Bergstein. "UNIDO seeks and promotes concrete, feasible solutions according to the motto 'progress through innovation'. And that's exactly what we offer." Camm Solutions has developed the fully sustainable, commercially viable material solution CAMM, which goes beyond conventional plastics: CAMM can be made from renewable materials such as biowaste, is water-soluble, biodegradable and compostable and enables an environmentally friendly recycling process without leaving harmful residues such as microplastics, toxins or eternal chemicals. "With the CAMM material, we not only have a vision, but also the products and partners to tackle the global plastic problem and the microplastic problem in particular," says Bergstein.

390 million tonnes of plastic are produced worldwide every year, most of which becomes waste or ends up in the environment. Microplastics have even been detected in embryos. Existing solutions to stem the flood of plastic are often lacking in one of three dimensions: Sustainability, cost-effectiveness and scalability, explains Bergstein. With the CAMM material and the partnerships on raw materials and recycling, Camm Solutions has created a holistic solution that combines all three dimensions. "For UNIDO, we are proof that visions can also be realised," says Bergstein.

Camm Solutions will be presenting its solutions to an international audience of experts and decision-makers at the International Vienna Energy and Climate Forum at the beginning of November. The forum sees itself as a platform that aims to provide impetus and practical solutions to support the UN Climate Change Conference COP 28 in Dubai two weeks before it takes place. It is not just about decarbonisation, but about the holistic promotion of green industrialisation and sustainable value chains.

"For us, the invitation from UNIDO is a good opportunity to publicise our work globally," says Bergstein, who will be speaking on a high-level panel in Vienna on the topic of "Nature Based Solutions". The exchange will allow both sides to contribute their strengths: Camm Solutions the solution to the global plastic problem, supported by worldwide partners. And UNIDO a global political network, expertise in public-private partnerships and a focus on sustainable supply chains. "There is a lot of potential to drive forward global partnerships that open up access to raw materials and contribute to the creation of sustainable industries and thus to value creation in Asia, Africa and Latin America," says Bergstein.

Press Release

The EU is finally taking action against microplastics. The first products will be banned as early as mid-October. "The microplastic problem is pressing and has been known for a long time, so we welcome this step," said Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "And there are now ecological alternatives." Take Camm Solutions' sustainable plastic replacement, for example. Instead of polluting soils with plastic particles, the material even has regenerative properties.

The EU Commission has banned the sale of microplastics as well as the sale of products to which microplastics have been deliberately added and which release these particles during use. Microplastics are synthetic polymers that are difficult to degrade and are smaller than five millimeters. They are found primarily in the sea. There, they accumulate in fish and shellfish and can thus also find their way into food.

The new EU regulations come into force on October 15, when the first products such as cosmetics may no longer contain microplastics. For the time being, there are exceptions for medicines, food and animal feed, among others. "The microplastic problem could be curbed even more if the ban covered all products whose use leaves microplastics behind - and not just those products to which microplastics have been deliberately added beforehand," Bergstein notes. This would also be in line with the Zero Pollution Action Plan, with which the EU aims to reduce plastic waste.

According to Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton, the EU decision contributes to ecological change in the industry and promotes innovative, microplastic-free products. "You don't have to wait for such products," Bergstein explains. "They already exist." For example, Camm Solutions has developed a revolutionary alternative to plastic made from polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) and other biodegradable materials - sustainably produced, biodegradable, recyclable, and usable for numerous purposes, from packaging to containers. The latest application is a stretch film, for example, to stabilize products on pallets. It is used in e-commerce, logistics, and also in the packaging of building materials. Here, the sustainable CAMM material is particularly advantageous, because in contact with cement it dissolves within a few minutes at room temperature. "And it does so without leaving any residue," Bergstein emphasizes. "Particularly important is that CAMM contains no microplastics, toxic substances or eternal chemicals."

That helps the environment. After all, the small plastic particles don't just pollute the oceans. According to recent studies, fields and meadows are also heavily polluted by microplastics. "Our material is gentle on the soil and even has regenerative properties, provided it degrades in nature," explains Bergstein. "That's why we're looking into deliberately returning it to nature with our partners."

Incorporating it into agriculture, for example, can be done through composting or biogas plants. "Our material is industrial and home compostable," Bergstein says. "Biodegradation under home composting conditions occurs within eight weeks. In the ocean, it immediately dissolves without microplastics."

Press Release

Continuous advancements are being made in finding new applications for the recyclable plastic alternative CAMM. The latest development: stretch film for packaging shipping goods or components. "Our stretch film offers many advantages over conventional plastic products," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer of Camm Solutions. "And we are working to establish a closed recycling loop for it.”

With the sustainable plastic made from natural materials and polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH), Camm Solutions has developed a revolutionary alternative to plastic - biodegradable and suitable for numerous purposes, from packaging to containers. Now the company has developed a new application: stretch film. "Tests in industrial settings with major wrapping machine manufacturers and performance tests with established partners in the logistics industry have been successful," says Bergstein.

Stretch films stabilize products on pallets, protecting them from dirt, dust, and transport damage. The film must have various properties, being as stretchable as possible while also tear- and puncture-resistant. Adhesion is also important: the film must not stick but must bind the different layers together. The material is used in e-commerce, logistics, and the construction industry.

"Our film meets all these properties just as well as conventional film," explains Bergstein. "Furthermore, it is very thin, optimizing material consumption." The sustainable CAMM material is particularly beneficial in the construction industry since the film dissolves on its own quickly and does not need to be removed after inserting components. The environment also benefits. After all, in Europe, only about 30 percent of the used stretch films are recycled, and in the US, it's only around 20 percent.

To further increase sustainability, Camm Solutions is currently examining two different end-of-life scenarios for the stretch film. In the first case, the company, in partnership with logistics and recycling partners, establishes a closed loop with end consumers and reuses the recycled material for various products. The second possibility: “Our material has fertilizing properties as it breaks down in nature. Therefore, we are examining, with our partners, the deliberate return to nature, such as in agriculture," Bergstein explains.

Press Release

Camm Solutions is preparing to multiply production volumes for its recyclable plastic substitute. To achieve this, the company is now opening another facility in Spain. "This creates space for high-volume production and realizing economies of scale," says Nanda Bergstein, the new Director of Camm Solutions in Spain and Chief Sustainability and Innovations Officer at the Holding Company.

With its sustainable polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH)-based plastic, Camm Solutions has developed a groundbreaking alternative to traditional plastic: sustainably produced, biodegradable and usable for various product applications without leaving harmful chemical residues or microplastics. At the company's plant in Spain, the camm material is produced in the form in which customers need it for further processing - as compounds, pellets or even as a finished product. After successfully transitioning from prototype development and pilot quantities to industrial production at the company's existing plant in Spain, Camm Solutions is now taking the next step in its growth strategy.

In addition to the existing plant in Rafelbunyol near Valencia, the company has secured an additional 1,500 square meters of space in the neighboring town of El Puig. This expansion will accommodate the turbomixing of the camm material and extrusion processes, which involve shaping the material through a specific opening. The El Puig facility will also see an increase in extrusion capacity through the addition of new machines and a corresponding increase in tonnage. "The additional production area complies with food safety standards, so granules for food applications can also be produced there," says Bergstein.

Furthermore, Camm Solutions plans to relocate office space to El Puig, freeing up more warehouse space in Rafelbunyol. The move will take place in September and October. Research and development activities, including laboratory work and pilot plant operations, as well as the production of injection molding products and films, will continue at the current site.

"To ensure that our sustainable material is also affordable and competitive, we are ramping up the quantity produced quickly and thus realizing corresponding economies of scale," Bergstein explains the expansion. In addition, the high demand for the camm material requires a rapid expansion of capacity. This year, Camm Solutions aims to produce and process around 1,500 tons of the camm material at the Spanish plant. With the expansion of capacity, this figure is expected to reach between 6,000 and 8,000 tons next year. "With the quantity produced, the sustainability effect naturally grows," Bergstein says. "This brings us closer to our goal of creating a global solution to the plastic problem."

Press Release

Paper is easy to recycle. No other material has such a high recycling rate globally. One problem, however, is paper that is filled with plastic. "Not all coated papers are recyclable, „says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. „Often they contain microplastics, which contradicts the principle of plastic avoidance." The goal must be that the materials either go into an eternal cycle – or dissolve completely and without harmful residues.

Paper recycling has been part of everyday life in Germany for a long time. According to the Federal Environment Agency (2020), the share of recovered paper in total paper production is almost 80 percent. This puts Germany in the top group worldwide. However, as soon as paper is mixed with other materials to make it more robust or water-repellent, thus replacing plastic packaging, recycling becomes complicated.

This poses major challenges for recycling companies. The reuse of coated paper is relatively time-consuming, because high quality paper recycling requires a homogeneous separation of materials. One example is paper bags, which are now often used instead of plastic bags. The paper used must have certain properties, such as moisture or tear resistance.

"To achieve these properties, the paper is often coated with plastics, which causes problems in recycling, Bergstein said. The coated paper hast to be sorted out and disposed of at great expense. Often only thermal recovery is still possible, but valuable raw materials are lost in this process.

One way out is to use environmentally friendly coatings on paper, so that recycling without contaminating the paper fibers is possible. "Recyclability must be taken into account from the outset," says Bergstein. "Paper that is coated with our CAMM materials fulfills many protective functionalities but at the same time can be disposed via the paper bin. In the recycling process, CAMM dissolves quickly when water is added and biodegrades without leaving any residue. In this way, the paper fibers can be recycled without any problems."

In future it will be ideal if material solutions are either completely recyclable or decompose completely. "Either or is the only viable approach," says Bergstein. Either a material must be created in such a way that it can be reused in an eternal cycle. Or it has to disintegrate completely without any harm to nature. "Both ways help to protect the environment."

Press Release

8 June is International Oceans Day, and the oceans really do need to be remembered – after all, they serve as a dumping ground for human pollutants. Vast quantities of plastic have accumulated in the oceans, they float as huge islands on the surface, sink to the bottom of the sea or are ingested as microplastics by living beings. "Global efforts to reduce plastic have to step up," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions.

The "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" can also be seen from space. It's a gigantic collection of plastic parts and containers floating on the North Pacific. In the early 2020s, 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic were estimated to be floating around. They are spread over an area that is said to be four times the size of Germany. A country of garbage. And it's only part of the problem. According to UN estimates, there are now up to 18,000 pieces of plastic floating on every square kilometer of ocean surface. To be clear, these are just the ones you can see. Most of the garbage lies at the bottom of the Oceans.

According to the UN, three-quarters of marine litter consists of plastics. Millions of tons are added every year, but there is no exact data. Like the sea, plastic is eternal. Sun and water decompose only slowly, leaving smaller and smaller fragments: microplastics that are unable to degrade. The problem is now so big that a year ago the United Nations passed a historic resolution to bring about an "end to plastic pollution".

The EU had already presented an action plan in 2015 to build a complete plastic loop. New raw material was to be obtained from old plastic containers and parts out of which new containers and parts were to be manufactured: old plastic would become new plastic, always in a circle. In this way, the production of new plastic as well as the environmentally harmful disposal of plastic waste was to be avoided. But Europe is still a long way from achieving its goal.

"If you want to break through the problem, you have to rely on alternative materials that take over the sensible functions of plastic and avoid the harmful effects," says Bergstein. The CAMM material is durable, robust and can be used like plastic for packaging or containers. Applied on paper, it is very easy to recycle: The packaging simply goes into the paper bin and ends up in paper recycling. By adding water in the paper dissolving process, the CAMM material quickly breaks down into its original building blocks: oxygen, carbon, and biomass. The leftover paper fibres are used entirely for the production of new paper. "It's as simple as that when you start moving away from plastic," says Bergstein, "for the benefit of the oceans, the environment and people."

Press Release

"Plastic," wrote the French philosopher Roland Barthes back in 1957, "is not just a material, it is the idea of its infinite transformation." Plastic is ubiquitous nowadays because it is not only incredibly moldable into any shapes, but also extremely durable. And that's exactly what poses a gigantic problem for the environment. The UN will therefore discuss a global anti-plastic agreement from May 29th onwards. "In the fight against the plastic crisis, politicians are deciding on bans, labels and taxes," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "But there is a silver bullet and it is simple: avoid plastic! At Camm Solutions we are making an essential contribution to this with our eco-conscious plastic substitute.”

On average, each EU citizen alone generated 34.6 kilos of plastic packaging waste in 2020, which was six kilos more than ten years earlier. In total, around 30 million tons of plastic waste are produced in the EU every year. Once plastic is in the world, it stays there for a long time, because it hardly rots. A plastic bottle takes about 450 years to decompose via by wind, water and sun. The residues continue to exist as microplastics, which are deposited in nature, penetrate organisms and food chains and cause damage in a magnituted that cannot be estimated. "The World Wildlife Fund describes microplastics and single-use packaging as the most pressing problems," says Bergstein. If we continue as we do, according to the WWF, global plastic production will double by 2040. From 29 May 2023, UN member states will therefore meet in Paris and discuss a global agreement to end plastic pollution. "Politicians have been trying to eliminate the flood of plastic for a long time," says Bergstein. The EU, for example, aims to reduce its total packaging waste by 15 percent below 2018 levels by 2040. To this end, it has issued bans on single-use products, promotes recycling, expands producer responsibility and introduces labelling requirements and plastic taxes. "However, environmental protection associations have long pointed out that plastic avoidance is better than postponing change: you simply have to replace plastic," Bergstein sums up.

For the first time, Camm Solutions' newly developed material manages to preserve all the positive functions of plastic and avoid the negative ones: it is biodegradable, compostable and allows the paper fibers to be recycled fully when applied as a layer to packaging material. If CAMM falls out of the recycling cycle and decomposes, no nano- or microplastic components remain. At the same time, CAMM can be used in almost any form or function: as a cosmetic container or as a packaging and filler. For example, the CAMM air cushion replaces the traditional plastic bubble wrap as a packaging material. The base fabric is made of FSC certified paper, to which a thin layer of CAMM material is applied. The air cushion is very light, uses up to 80 percent less material than pure paper fillers and is available in non-standard and customer-specific formats. At the same time, the air cushion can be disposed of in the paper recycling bin and then recycled without leaving any residue.

"What Roland Barthes writes about plastic and its infinite formability also applies to our material," says Bergstein. "With the crucial difference: CAMM disappears when it's no longer needed – it's not eternal.”

Hamburger Abendblatt

Firma Camm Solutions mit Managementsitz in Hamburg will die Verpackungsindustrie verändern.

Nanda Bergstein erzählt es ganz beiläufig, aber für die meisten Menschen dürfte es eine erstaunliche - und erschreckende - Tatsache sein: “Wir nehmen durch Lebensmittel und Getränke im Schnitt jede Woche etwa die Menge einer Kreditkarte an Mikroplastik zu uns.” Bergstein ist Mitglied der Geschäftsleitung des jungen Unternehmens Camm Solutions, das dazu beitragen will, dieses Problem zu beseitigen: “Uns geht es darum konventionelles Plastik in der Breite zu ersetzen.”

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Press Release

Following the acquisition of the production company Green Cycles in Valencia, Spain, the company has now been renamed Camm Spain. "At the same time, there has been a change in management," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "In addition to research and development, this also strengthens production.”

Camm Spain (formerly Green Cycles) had already been one of the most important companies in the research and development of sustainable plastic alternatives for years. At the same time, capacities have already been created here, particularly for the production of packaging. "In addition to prototyping and the production of small batches, large-scale industrial production has recently started in Spain," says Bergstein. "Production has been organised in such a way that the camm material can be processed like conventional plastic." Camm Spain's production capacity is set to increase to 1,500 tonnes in 2023 and 6,000 to 8,000 tonnes per year in 2024.

The camm material is water-soluble and compostable: if it ends up as packaging in paper waste in combination with paper, camm decomposes in the recycling process with the addition of water without leaving behind environmentally harmful substances such as microplastics - the paper can be easily and, above all, completely recycled. Due to its versatile properties and the various end-of-life scenarios, camm can be used to recycle conventional paper.

Press Release

Camm Solutions has succeeded in making a sustainable plastic based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) suitable for industrial use. "Until now, the material has been tested mainly in the industrialization pre-stage," says Nanda Bergstein, Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer at Camm Solutions. "In recent months, we have managed to overcome final challenges." This now paves the way for high-volume production and application of the new material.

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) is a water-soluble and completely biodegradable synthetic polymer and has so far been known mainly as a soluble detergent pod. However, PVOH has not yet been used in areas with high purity requirements, for example due to direct food contact. The reason for this is the non-thermoplastic nature of the polymer: when processed with heat, the polymer partially decomposes. "Camm Solutions has succeeded in building a material that can be processed via common thermal production methods, such as injection molding or blow/cast film, without negatively affecting the material properties," says Bergstein. At the same time, all the positive properties of polyvinyl alcohol, such as biodegradability and water solubility, are fully retained.

So far, the camm material has been tested on pilot lines together with partners from the packaging and food industries. Industrial production at the company's own factory in Spain has now been running stably for a few weeks. Both pure blow and cast films and paper laminates for packaging systems are coming off the production line in a web width of 120 centimeters and high quality.

The breakthrough makes the environmentally friendly material a real alternative for the first time. "We've finished building the entire ecosystem, from raw materials and their preparation to pellet production and product manufacturing. As a result, the camm material is now available at scales that make a real difference," Bergstein says. This year, the factory in Spain is expected to produce and process about 1,500 tons of the material. "Next year, all production lines are then expected to be fully run-in, bringing the total annual capacity to 5,000 to 8,000 tons," Bergstein says.