Source : Yasemin SALİH 04:00 04/10/2025 ,Cumartesi , Hürriyet

SEM Plastik is once again taking a forward-looking step with its sustainable production approach. Through the “Hamburgers Turned into Trays / Mc Tray” project, it makes a strong contribution to reducing environmental impact by converting waste from hamburger buns into bio-based plastic trays. This initiative stands out as a concrete example of the vision for sustainability and circular economy.

The project is carried out in collaboration with McDonald’s Turkey operations. The idea of integrating starch obtained from waste bread into plastic raw materials was developed by young entrepreneur Büşra Köksal. SEM Plastik scaled this idea and integrated it into their production processes. The pilot year of the project was set as 2025 under the leadership of Yavuz Eroğlu.

Currently, about 10% of the trays contain bio-based content; this rate is planned to be increased over time. McDonald’s supported the project with 30,000 trays. Approximately 2 tons of waste bread were used in this production.

This production aims to achieve a significant reduction in fossil-based plastic: with 30,000 trays, it is planned to prevent the use of about 1 ton of fossil-based plastic.

SEM Plastik’s goal is to reach an annual production of 100,000 bio-based trays and increase the bio-based content ratio to around 30%.

“Next Up: Potatoes” – Expanding the New Goal

SEM Plastik and McDonald’s plan to take the next step by converting potato waste into starch-based plastic products. This goal is highly important for expanding the boundaries of the circular economy and making the fight against food waste more inclusive.

SEM Plastik’s Contributions to Sustainability

• Circular Economy: Redefining the concept of “waste” by turning food waste into raw materials for plastic production.
• Carbon Footprint Reduction: Aiming to indirectly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by lowering the use of fossil-based plastics.
• Reusable Products: The developed trays are dishwasher safe and designed for long-term use.
• R&D and Local Innovation: The project aims to increase R&D capacity in Turkey and promote local innovation.
• Social Awareness: The idea of revaluing waste serves as an example to raise environmental awareness in the public.

Message from SEM Plastik

Yavuz Eroğlu summarizes SEM Plastik’s sustainable production vision as follows:

“Environmental responsibility is not just a statement; it is an approach that must be integrated into every stage of our production processes. Projects like ‘Mc Tray’ allow us to utilize food-related waste and promise to create a transformative impact in the plastics sector. Our next goal is to extend this transformation to widely used food wastes such as potatoes.”

For more detailed information, click here: https://bigpara.hurriyet.com.tr/haberler/ekonomi-haberleri/atik-ekmekler-tepsi-oldu-sirada-patates-var_ID1618761