A team of researchers at South East Technological University (SETU) are leading multiple projects that seek to transform these by-products from different industries, especially from food and beverage processing, into bioplastics that are both sustainable but can also compete with currently used plastics in terms of their functionality. So far, the team has successfully generated a range of bioplastic materials – each with different mechanical characteristics depending on the formulation and the by-products used. The project team also performed a mechanical analysis of these materials, which is crucial to understanding how well they perform compared to traditional plastics. In addition to this, the project also assesses the environmental impact of bioplastics on soil and water, ensuring that sustainability remains central to the development process.