What is the car shell used for? Ordinary steel, high carbon fiber, then using vegetables and fruits to make cars, it sounds a bit unreliable. On June 10th, the two items, tomato and car that might sound different, were linked by Ford Motors and Heinz researchers.

Recently, Ford and Heinz have teamed up to use tomato fiber for vehicle manufacturing and automotive materials – the dried tomato skin can be used to make vehicle wiring brackets and storage compartments. “We hope that by-products from these food processing processes will come in handy in the vehicle manufacturing process,” said Ellen Lee, Ford Plastics R&D technologist. “Our goal is to develop new materials that are lightweight and strong enough to meet the needs of the car. At the same time reduce the impact on the environment."

Ford Motor Co., Ltd. partnered with Heinz, Coca-Cola, Nike and Procter & Gamble two years ago to further develop 100% plant-based plastic materials and attempted to use this new material from fiber to packaging for various uses. The environmental impact of chemical packaging products.

Heinz's most popular product, Heinz Ketchup, consumes more than 2 million tons of tomatoes a year. Researchers at the company have been looking for reuse channels for processing by-products such as tomato skin, tomato seeds and stems. In the end, the company's top management found the Ford Motor Company.

“We are very excited to discover this technology,” said Vidhu Nagpal, deputy director of development at Heinz. “Although we are still in the early stages of research, there are still many problems, but our cooperation with Ford and Heinz, and 100% The environmentally friendly role of plant-based plastics is very exciting."

Ford has been committed to reducing environmental impacts through emissions reduction, recycling and other means as an important part of the company's global sustainability strategy. At the same time, Ford is also very focused on promoting the development of fuel economy vehicle technology. In recent years, Ford has increased the use ratio of recycled non-metallic and bio-based materials. After the introduction of cellulose-based center console components and rice husk cover brackets last year, Ford's bio-based material components increased to eight.

Ford's other bio-based materials include: coconut-based blends, floor mats and seat materials made from recycled cotton, and soy cushions and headrests.