Bio-based content certification presented at European Coatings Technology Forum

On 6 and 7 October 2020, the European Coatings Technology Forum on Bio-based coatings took place. Initially intended as an onsite conference, all talks were provided remotely via a live stream. Jarno Dakhorst, consultant Energy & Biobased Economy at NEN and also the Scheme Manager for Bio-based content certification, was invited to provide a presentation about how standardisation and certification can accelerate the use of bio-based products in the coatings sector.

“In the transition towards a low-carbon (circular) economy, the industry is shifting from fossil-based to bio-based raw materials for their products. Also the coatings sector is looking into the use of raw materials derived from biomass. Credible claims about characteristics of bio-based coatings are key for the acceptance of these novel products, both in business-to-business and business-to-consumer / business-to-government communication.”, Jarno Dakhorst explained the interest from European Coatings in this topic.

In his talk, Jarno Dakhorst provided insight in the role of standardisation and certification to improve communication about important characteristics of bio-based products throughout the entire supply chain. He used Bio-based content certification as one of two examples of certification schemes managed by NEN in the field of the bioeconomy to illustrate the certification process and its added value. He concluded with a number of takeaways for the coatings sector about the opportunities and challenges in applying standards and certifications in their business strategy and operations to accelerate the use of bio-based products in their coatings.

The talk was well received. Several questions were asked by the audience, which were partly answered during the live stream and partly by correspondence. More information on this Technology Forum is available at the website of European Coatings.