Floreon Founder and CEO, Shaun Chatterton, tells of his 10 year journey through research and development to now offering the sustainable and high performing bioplastic, Floreon.
Floreon began with a question; what happens to all those plastic water cooler bottles when they are thrown away? I felt an onus of responsibility to find the answer because my former company, the UK’s largest independent distributor of cleaning and hygiene products, supplied over 100,000 of these bottles a year.
My name is Shaun Chatterton, and I am the CEO and Founder of Floreon.
I was so concerned about the proper disposal of these plastic bottles that I began to ask around, but to no avail. The vague responses I was hearing were not sufficient and after relentlessly searching for a definitive answer, the government directed me to Innovate UK who have subsequently funded both of our Knowledge Transfer Partnerships with the University of Sheffield. We decided to work with PLA, a plant-based plastic usually too brittle for durable uses.
Fast forward through ten years of intense research and development and Floreon has award-winning enhanced PLA formulations, patented globally and ready to be commercialised. This goes to show that becoming sustainable is more than worth the journey because Floreon now offers a bioplastic suitable for a range of applications. One thing I have watched positively change over this last decade is our society’s willingness to accept responsibility and help make a difference.
Oil-based plastics are cheap and plentiful but terribly unsustainable. We are proud to be offering a greener option with a much lower carbon footprint than traditional plastics and the options to recycle and compost. We are overjoyed to be working with organisations that value the environment as we do, enabling them to integrate a material that will not end in landfill or incineration.
Naturally, no story is without its setbacks. We have had doors close on us, leads go cold and delays in projects (understandably, circumstances under Covid have not helped) but I have led Floreon through each of these challenges because I always believed in our material.
Echoes of the climate crisis surround us daily. No one can deny their environmental impact, however small, and we must all take action to stop climate change. If you have an idea, a dream, a determination, to join the fight in your own way then I urge you to keep pushing until you succeed. I know it is possible, which is why I have included my contact details here. I remain enthusiastic as ever to work with people who want to make a commitment to the planet.
Shaun Chatterton, Floreon CEO and Founder.
Email: [email protected]
