BIOPOLYMER INNOVATION AWARD

Submission deadline: April 11, 2026

Biobased and biodegradable plastics are key materials for eco-efficient material cycles, a microplastic-free environment, and the minimization of the use of fossil fuels. To promote innovation in this field, the non-profit POLYKUM association has been honoring the most significant new developments in the field of biobased and biodegradable plastics from around the world for the past few years.

The awards ceremony will take place as part of the BIOPOLYMER Congress, where the award-winning projects will also be presented to a wider audience. Over the past two years, viewers from more than 40 countries on five continents have attended the event.

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Application for the BIOPOLYMER Innovation Award 2026

Eligible persons

Companies, research institutions and associations, project groups or individuals from all over the world and all sectors with self-developed products or applications made of bioplastics or pioneering technologies for their production, processing and utilization can apply for the award. Applications can be submitted by the originators of the innovations themselves or by external third parties.

Participation criteria

Developments and inventions from the following areas can be submitted for the competition:

Pioneering products or applications made from bio-based and biodegradable plastics. Intrinsic biodegradability and environmental compatibility of the submitted plastic products and/or materials are required. Intrinsic biodegradability means that the materials used can be metabolized by microorganisms and enzymes at the end of their useful life and thus become part of the natural cycle. Certified biodegradability is not necessarily a prerequisite.
Only if objective technical reasons rule out biodegradability (e.g. due to safety regulations or physical conditions) can particularly innovative bio-based but non-biodegradable materials and products also take part in the competition.
Innovative technologies that significantly simplify, make more effective or raise the production, processing or utilization (e.g. recycling, composting) of biopolymers to a new level of quality.

The innovations should have passed the basic research stage and have a realistic chance of entering the market or have already been successfully placed on the market.

Prizes

In addition to the main prize, which is endowed with prize money of 2,000 euros, a second and a third prize (both not endowed) will also be awarded. All prize winners will also be given the opportunity to present their innovation in a lecture at the “BIOPOLYMER - Processing & Molding 2026” congress. PLASTVERARBEITER will also support the award winners with press and public relations work.

Jury & selection process

The winners are selected from all the entries by the jury appointed by Polykum, which includes the following experts from business, science and the media:

Dr. Martin Bussmann, Director Material Innovation at Mosca GmbH
Stefan Lenz, Editor-in-Chief for PlastXnow, Digital Process Industry, and r.energy magazines, WIN-Verlag GmbH & Co.KG.
Dr. Patrick Hirsch, expert for bioplastics at the Fraunhofer Institute for Materials and Systems (IMWS) Halle (Saale) and at the Fraunhofer Pilot Plant Center (PAZ) Schkopau
Peter Putsch, Chairman of POLYKUM e. V. - Fördergemeinschaft für Polymerentwicklung und Kunststofftechnik in Mitteldeutschland, Merseburg
Michael Walter, Global Business Development Manager at Wirthwein SE

The award winners are nominated on the basis of the award's published application criteria. All jury members have the same number and weighting of votes. Each member decides independently and autonomously on the allocation of their votes following joint consultation and assessment of the entries. Legal recourse is excluded

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Winner of the BIOPOLYMER Innovation Award 2025

Innovation Awards were presented on the eve of the Congress during a dinner. Before announcing the placements, the four prizewinners presented their developments and were available to answer questions from the audience in the Georg-Friedrich-Händel-Halle in Halle (Saale).