Bioplastics Proven to Break Down in Home Composting Systems

Published June 10, 2009

More Stories On: Packaging

Bioplastic packaging from two major producers have been tested in home composting systems by a U.K. consumer group, showing that they all compost in relatively short amounts of time.

As more companies explore bioplastic packaging and materials, some concerns have been raised about the end of life of bioplastic. Some types of bioplastic can only be composted in industrial composting facilities, and in most places there is little composting infrastructure. Making materials that can also be handled in home compost settings raises the ability for those materials to be composted and receive the end of life the manufacturer intended, instead of being throw in the trash.

Consumer group Which? tested Novamont's Mater-Bi and Innovia Films' NatureFlex bioplastic products for its May 2009 issues of Which? Gardening magazine.

The group tested five Mater-Bi products, including kitchen garbage bags, produce bags and bread packaging, and NatureFlex's produce and cereal bags. The products were put in a home composting bin with garden waste and turned after two and four months.

The NatureFlex produce bags were completely gone after the first two months, and only a few bits of the cereal bag, a lamination of NatureFlex and Mater-Bi, remained. The majority of the Mater-Bi products had broken down after four months, and Which? predicted the remainder would break down in the next two months.

Mater-Bi had already passed a range of tests to be certified as biodegradable and compostable, but certifications can vary by country and can be confusing regarding what conditions are necessary for materials to break down. Tests like those by Which? and other consumer groups like Consumer Reports help consumers understand what can and can't be done with materials like bioplastic.

^{Composting - CC license by megananne}

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Bioplastics Proven to Break Down in Home Composting Systems

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