HAWTHORNE, Calif. -- Cereplast, a manufacturer of proprietary bio-based, sustainable plastics, announced that a recent study from the European Bioplastics and the European Polysaccharide Network of Excellence (EPNOE) estimates that current technology may make it possible for up to 90 percent of total plastics consumed to be replaced by bio-based polymers.

The study cites that lower oil prices temporarily affected the bio-plastics market in 2009. However, the bio-plastics market experienced a 38 percent growth rate in the timeframe 2003 through 2007. The European growth rate was said to be as high as 48 percent.

Frederic Scheer, founder and CEO of Cereplast, commented, “This study found that in 2007, only 0.3 percent of global plastic production was bio-based. By 2013 we expect that overall bio-plastics manufacturing capacity will increase by approximately seven times current levels, which still barely taps the surface. Demand is huge and will increase exponentially according to all the indicators we are watching.”

"The role that lightweight conventional plastics played in the past, substituting durable materials like iron and steel in vast products, could soon be taken over by bio-based plastics. As the study shows, the potential is enormous," added Hasso von Pogrell, managing director of European Bioplastics.

The use of bio-plastics is beginning to catch on in the auto parts industry. Recently, DENSO and DuPont Automotive received recognition from the Society of Plastics Engineers Automotive Division for the development of a new plant-derived resin radiator end tank, which can currently be found on some 2009 Toyota Camrys.