From the 11th to the 13th of June, Siegburg/Cologne, Germany, will host the third Renewable Materials Conference (RMC), the world's leading event for chemicals and materials based on biomass, carbon capture and utilisation (CCU), or chemical recycling. The conference, developed by Germany's nova-Institute, has distinguished itself in recent years by presenting all renewable materials solutions in one event, covering the entire industry value chain. The 2023 Renewable Materials Conference was attended by nearly 500 participants from 32 countries, 90% of whom were industry representatives. This year, between 500 and 600 participants are expected, and Renewable Matter is a media partner for the event.

Renewable Materials Conference, the programme

The three-day event will feature prominent speakers from industry, academia, and politics. Companies such as BASF, Henkel, Cargill Bioindustrial, Unilever, and Braskem, along with research institutions such as the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP, will present the latest developments in technology, innovation, policy, and markets. The final programme, with eighty presentations, twenty panel discussions, and more than ten workshops, is available on the event website. Companies, associations, and institutes are still invited to host one of the workshops and participate in the exhibition and sponsorship opportunities.

“The Renewable Materials Conference is a crucial platform for collaboration and knowledge exchange in the renewable materials industry,” says Michael Carus, CEO of nova-Institute and organiser of the RMC. “Our comprehensive approach encompasses the entire value chain, from alternative carbon raw materials and the chemical industry to the materials sector, manufacturers, brand owners, and investors. This makes the RMC the definite platform for networking and collaboration in the new renewable carbon economy.”

The conference will cover a broad array of concepts and technologies, including sustainable carbon cycles, renewable refineries, chemical recycling, the future of the chemical and plastics industries, and innovative process technologies. Technologies for producing renewable chemical products, polymers, plastics, and more will be showcased. On the third day, significant attention will be given to the consumer perspective, certifications, sustainability, life cycle assessment, and the role of policies, with a speech from a member of the European Commission's DG Environment.

Renewable Material of the Year Innovation Award

The Renewable Material of the Year awards ceremony is scheduled for the end of the second day of the event. A panel of judges, comprising representatives from the nova-Institute, the Advisory Board, and conference sponsors, selected the six best innovations from the 38 applications submitted. On the 12th of June, each of the six selected companies will present their innovation in a 10-minute pitch. Following these presentations, the three winners will be chosen by conference attendees and announced shortly thereafter.

The Innovation Award is organised by the nova-Institute and sponsored by Covestro. The six nominees for the 2024 Innovation Award are the Canadian company Aduro Clean Technologies, Denmark's Again, Germany's amynova polymers and VAUDE Sport (producer of the first wood-based polyester textile product), Hungary's eChemicles, and Sweden's Reselo.

The winners of the last three years' Renewable Material of the Year award were Carbios (FR), Colipi (DE), Eastman (USA), KUORI (CH), Lactips (FR), LanzaTech (US/CH), Plantics (NL) and Vepa (NL), traceless® (DE) and Twelve (USA).

This article is also available in Italian / Questo articolo è disponibile anche in italiano

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