Reducing Adhesive Carbon Footprint with Biobased Tackifiers

With the rising impacts of climate change and the global ambition to move to a circular economy, businesses are under pressure to develop and implement better sustainability practices. It has also led to new requirements and regulations for many industries. Companies in segments such as adhesives now seek materials that lower their product’s carbon footprint and are easy to recycle in addition to performance. They are also required to enhance production safety and make credible claims about the sustainability credentials of their products.

Kraton pine chemicals are produced from renewable by-products of the paper and pulp industry and are utilized to create products used by millions around the globe each day. Our biobased portfolio can deliver value to numerous industries due to its reduced cradle-to-gate environmental impact and ISCC PLUS certified* renewable content.

Kraton pine-based products include our high-quality tackifiers, the preferred chemistry for various adhesive formulations due to their excellent adhesion performance and compatibility with a broad range of polymers. Suitable for hot-melt, solvent, and water-based adhesive technologies, Kraton biobased tackifiers are designed to improve various applications, including packaging, tapes, labels, and flooring adhesives.

The cradle-to-gate LCA performed on Kraton biobased tackifiers shows that the CO2 captured by the pine trees during the first phase of the tackifier’s life cycle is far greater than the CO2 emissions that result from the processes to produce our product. This results in a substantial negative cradle-to-gate carbon emission for Kraton biobased tackifiers. In addition, Kraton biobased tackifiers have up to 95% ISCC PLUS certified renewable content, further expanding the product’s sustainability advantage. Adhesives formulated with biobased tackifiers can also be compatible with paper recycling, offering even more environmental benefits across the entire product life cycle**.

The in-depth expertise of our R&D team, along with our targeted innovations, enables us to develop solutions that proactively address evolving markets and regulatory requirements for the adhesives industry. We will continue to work with adhesive formulators to deliver sustainable, high-quality products that support customer needs and future growth.

* ISCC PLUS certificates are available for a selection of our products.

** The actual life cycle performance improvement that is achieved through the use of Kraton products can only be concluded through an ISO-certified process that considers all life cycle stages of the end product.