Biodegradable Plastics Update

As you walk down the aisle of a supermarket these days, you can find a range of new biodegradable plastic products on the shelf. Most of the available brands are designed to decompose safely in composting systems and meet the standards used by the Biodegradable Products Institute. The debate about where biodegradable plastics fit in the larger scheme of waste reduction is ongoing. The starch-based products will have to contend with the pressures of more chaotic weather, a growing need for food, and emerging ethanol production. Two places where biodegradable plastics make good system sense are in compost collection systems and as replacements for regular plastic mulches in large scale vegetable production. Here are some places to look to help you follow the debate as well as to choose products for personal or municipal use:

Biodegradable Products Institute(BPI) is based in New York and is closely associated with the US Composting Council. It is a multi-stakeholder organization that offers the use of a product logo if the products can meet the requirements set out in the American Society for Testing & Material (ASTM) Standards D6400 and D6868. Most of the members are from North America, although European Bioplastics maintains a membership. (www.bpiworld.org)

European Bioplastics is European-based organization similar to BPI that offers the use of a product logo if products meet the requirements of EN 13432, the harmonized European Standard for Compostable plastics. (www.european-bioplastics.org)

Bureau de normalisation du Québec (BNQ) is a standard organization operating in Canada. The BNQ is in the process of developing the Canadian Standard for Compostable Plastic Bags. The draft document can still be viewed at the Compost Council of Canada’s website (www.compost.org)

Mater-Bi is a proprietary starch-based plastic developed by Novamont S.P.A., an Italian company set up by scientists and entrepreneurs. It produces Mater-Bi and sells it to customers in the form of granules. (www.materbi.com)

BASF EcoFlex BASF is a European based corporation that manufactures a wide range of chemicals and plastics. Ecoflex is a compostable copolyester plastic based on conventional materials and is produced in existing plants using available technologies. It can also be mixed with starch for some applications. (search BASF EcoFlex)

Oxobiodegradable plastics (OBP’s ) are plastic materials made from conventional fossil fuel-derived resins that undergo a two-step degradation. The first step is strictly chemical and is initiated by additives in the resin. The second step is accomplished by microbes. Standards and labeling for these types of plastics are under consideration but not yet in place. (www.oxobio.org)

Canadian Companies Marketing Compostable Packaging* (certified by BPI)

*Information condensed from , Biocycle Magazine, July 2007, Goldstein & Olivares, What’s What and Who’s Who in Compostable Products

(Source: August 2007 WasteWatch)

See also our Plastics page on biodegradable plastics.

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