Canada's New Invention Could Replace Plastic Forever

Canada throws away 3 million tonnes of plastic a year — and only about 9% gets recycled. These ten Canadian teams think they've found a way out. A clear film made from forest waste that disappears in soil in 19 days. Bacteria in Toronto that turn leftovers into plastic that rots. A Montreal machine that uses microwaves to turn Styrofoam back into liquid. Old fishing nets in Nova Scotia turned into raw material for new plastic. We count down ten Canadian inventions that could replace plastic — and tell you honestly which ones already work and which are still a promise. Chapters 0:00 Plastic made from trees? 1:33 Why plastic is so hard to beat 4:12 #10 The takeout container that comes back — Friendlier, Guelph 6:42 #9 Grocery bags turned into roads — GreenMantra, Brantford 9:23 #8 Old fishing nets become new plastic — Sustane, Nova Scotia 12:00 #7 Breaking plastic with water — Aduro, London ON 14:23 #6 Microwaves vs Styrofoam — Pyrowave, Montreal 16:30 Halfway scoreboard 17:40 #5 The oil that dissolves foam — UpSolv, Montreal 20:09 #4 Unmaking bottles at bath temperature — Loop Industries, Quebec 22:38 #3 Paper that protects like plastic — Nfinite, Waterloo 25:38 #2 Bacteria that make plastic from food waste — Genecis, Toronto 28:20 #1 Plastic from the forest — UBC, Vancouver 31:16 Where Canada really stands Sources Government of Canada — plastic waste: canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/managing-reducing-waste/reduce-plastic-waste.html Friendlier: friendlier.com GreenMantra Technologies: greenmantra.com Sustane Technologies: sustanetech.com Aduro Clean Technologies: adurocleantech.com Pyrowave: pyrowave.com UpSolv (Polystyvert): upsolv.ca Loop Industries: loopindustries.com Nfinite: nfinitepaper.com Genecis Bioindustries: genecis.co TerraVerdae Bioworks: terraverdae.com UBC Faculty of Forestry, Dr. Feng Jiang: news.ubc.ca/2022/09/ubc-researcher-creates-wood-based-alternative-to-single-use-plastic/ Footage: Pexels (Pexels License) and Wikimedia Commons: • 400 Series Telephone in ivory Bakelite — Tangerineduel, CC BY-SA 4.0 • Fishing Net On Reef — Tim Sheerman-Chase, CC BY 2.0 • 2019 Chemelot — Kleon3, CC BY-SA 4.0 • Biodegradable waste — Muu-karhu, CC BY-SA 3.0 • UBC Clock Tower and IKB Learning Centre — Dllu, CC BY-SA 4.0 • Réception de polystyrène par Idea-Tec — Celinea33, CC BY-SA 4.0 • HK Plastic Recycling mark, PET food container — Woakamkurhram, CC BY-SA 3.0 • Advance Auto Parts interior — Harrison Keely, CC BY 4.0 Some visuals are AI-generated illustrations and do not show the companies' actual facilities or products. #Canada #Plastic #Innovation