Metabolix is already building a 55,000tpa plant for bioplastics Mirel in conjunction with another US major ADM. Oilseeds are the key feedstock for the manufacture of biodiesel in the US and co-producing bioplastics is seen as improving the economics of the industry.

The Massachusetts-based company has also established a strategic partnership with the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, where it will assemble a team of scientists to form an R & D resource.

Dr Oliver Peoples, co-founder and chief scientific officer of Metabolix, said: “This technology is expected to play an important role in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels.”

The new project is the third in which Metabolix aims to use its patented technology in crop systems alongside switchgrass and sugar cane.