Biodegradable and Recycled Plastic Bags

29 Apr 2013

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With environmental concerns today, there is a high need to create packaging that can be recycled; biodegradable packaging is a new trend.
 
What defines biodegradable? This is an important question. There are special characteristics of biodegradable plastic bags and packaging:

  • They consist of renewable resources
  • Or they can be harvested directly from nature
  • They can completely decompose, with the aid of micro-organisms, when placed in a composting area

Biodegradable is a buzz word these days. But many products that claim to be easily decomposed are not. This is because up until very recently there were no hard-fast rules, guidelines or regulations for products and many manufacturers were calling their plastics biodegradable, when they were not.  Biodegradable plastic bags are plant-based.

Moving Toward Biodegradable Packing

Prior to recent years, nearly all packaging for food, produce, and supplies were sold in plastics that were oil-based, made from petroleum. Now with the rising costs of oil, companies are looking for ways to save money.

It is believed that there will be a growing demand for this corn-based biodegradable product, causing the market to grow by about 20% over the next year. Consumers and environmentalists, along with national recycling regulations, are helping with the growth.

Increasing interest in the new PLA technology is because of these main factors which include:

  • The improved quality of bioplastics
  • The growing market share of these products
  • Cost-competitiveness
  • More competition as new bioplastic companies crop up around the world

Purchasing Biodegradable Plastic Bags and Packaging

Now that you are more familiar with what it means to be biodegradable and how easily products that are made of natural substances can filter back into the soil instead of piling up in landfills, why not agree to purchase these products?

For more information on biodegradable plastics and recycled plastic bags, contact Atlantic Poly.

Greenliving.com