Recap: VIP 2026 Conference in Brest

From June 1st to 4th, 2026, part of the TwinLoop team had the pleasure of attending the VIP 2026 conference – Polymer Ageing, a must-attend event for the scientific community working on the ageing mechanisms of polymer materials.

The conference was a great opportunity to present the ambitions and early work of the TwinLoop project through two posters:

"TwinLoop: securing the recycling of food packaging", presented by Pauline Rieu, which shared the project's overall vision and its approach to better characterizing and securing the use of recycled plastics intended for food contact.

"Polymer ageing and chemical fingerprints: an analytical approach to the traceability of recycled plastics", presented by Léane Senanou, which highlighted the work of her PhD thesis carried out as part of TwinLoop. Her research explores how the chemical signatures generated during ageing can be leveraged through analytical and chemometric approaches to improve the traceability of recycled materials.

Sandra Domenek, coordinator of the TwinLoop project, also contributed to the conference's scientific program by delivering a keynote on the challenges and perspectives of polymer ageing for packaging safety and sustainability.

Beyond the scientific presentations, the week was marked by many enriching exchanges with the researchers and industry professionals in attendance, paving the way for new ideas and collaborations around the challenges of polymer ageing.

The team also had the opportunity to visit Ifremer's facilities in Brest, a fascinating discovery that highlighted the breadth of research being carried out in this region, which is strongly focused on scientific innovation.

A big thank you to the organizers of VIP 2026 for their warm welcome and for the quality of this event, as well as to everyone the team had the pleasure of connecting with over these four days. The TwinLoop team comes away inspired, with new ideas and fresh perspectives for the project going forward.