KUALA LUMPUR: Biodegradable packaging products made of rice straw waste, which are being produced through a collaboration between Bioeconomy Corporation and BioNexus Status company Free The Seed Sdn Bhd, are projected to reach a market value of RM60 million starting in 2025. The key export destinations include Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, and the United Kingdom, the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MOSTI) and Bioeconomy Corporation said in a joint statement today.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the biodegradable packaging products are produced at Free The Seed’s facility in Gurun, Kedah, utilizing innovative processing of rice straw waste through enzyme biotechnology. MOSTI Minister Chang Lih Kang noted that through this collaboration, farmers in the region are projected to earn an additional RM3 million annually starting in 2025 through the sale of rice straw waste.
‘To date, 618 farmers have joined the initiative, with the number expected to grow to 3,700 once full-scale operations
commence in 2025,’ he said during a working visit to the facility. According to the statement, this demonstrates the immense potential of biotechnology in transforming rice straw waste into ‘green gold’, playing a crucial role in boosting farmers’ incomes, creating job opportunities, driving the circular economy, and promoting environmental sustainability.
Bioeconomy Corporation chief executive officer Mohd Khairul Fidzal Abdul Razak said the expanded capacity of this collaboration is expected to produce up to 120 million units of biodegradable packaging annually, catering to the medical, food, industrial, and electronics sectors. ‘Initially focused on food and healthcare packaging for export, the company has successfully ventured into new sectors, including local healthcare, the semiconductor industry, and sustainable energy,’ he said in the statement.
He added that this collaboration has also led to the expansion of operations, creating 120 new job opportunities, 30 per cent of which are filled by skilled
Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) workers. These efforts align with the National Biotechnology Policy 2.0 and the nation’s sustainable development agenda, the statement said.