What's What and Who's Who in Compostable Products
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Compostable, Biodegradable Update BAGS, FOODSERVICE WARE, PACKAGING FILMS WHAT’S WHAT AND WHO’S WHO IN COMPOSTABLE PRODUCTS Demand for sustainable packaging, established standards for compostability and biodegradability, and increasing number of organics diversion programs are driving demand for compostable products. Nora Goldstein and Cristina Olivares HESE are, without a doubt, excit- products over the next few years. “So many ing times for companies in the factors are influencing the direction of bio- compostable products industry — materials,” says Bob Findlen, Vice-Presi- from the manufacturers of resins dent of Sales and Marketing of the Natural to the distributors of the end prod- Plastics polymer brand from Metabolix, Inc. ucts. After close to 20 years of “There is the concern around sustainability Tproduct and market development, a num- and the demand and activity that compa- ber of factors are converging to create de- nies like Wal-Mart are bringing to the mar- mand for compostable bags, foodservice ketplace. There is the biodegradability part ware, packaging films and containers. of the market to address issues like litter These include retailer demand for sustain- from traditional plastic bags. Environmen- able packaging, rising cost of petrochemi- tal issues are another driving factor, e.g., cals, expansion of food residuals compost- carbon balance, along with the unsustain- ing and zero waste initiatives, and, most ability of our thirst for oil. All these things recently, passage of an ordinance in San are happening, all at the same time. But Francisco to ban large grocery stores and have we reached a critical mass? If that is pharmacies from giving out traditional defined as starting to have an effect on the plastic shopping bags, which is expected to use of petroleum, we are not there yet. But catch on in other communities. Added to compostable products are on the shelves to- those factors are the well-established cer- day and we do have sponsorship from major tification programs for resins and com- brand owners to use these materials. So we postable products, which have boosted reg- are definitely past the phase of not wanting ulatory and consumer confidence that the products perform as advertised. San Francisco’s ordinance to ban large grocery stores and pharmacies from giving While interviewing various resin and out traditional plastic shopping bags opens product manufacturers for this article, we up market opportunities for compostable asked if anyone was observing a “critical bags such as the one manufactured with mass” of interest and demand that will lead Novamont’s Mater-Bi resin (resin pellets in to rapid growth of the use of compostable bottom photo). 38 BIOCYCLE JULY 2007 to be the first to use the products.” Cortec markets its compostable Jeff Cole with Genpak — one of the ma- bags under the EcoWorks and jor foodservice supplier “brands” using EcoFilm brands. The company biodegradable and compostable resins for uses a corn-based resin its Harvest Collection line — also believes blended with polyesters. considerable progress has been made in the industry, but still sees challenges in the marketplace. “Genpak is one of the biggest providers of quality single use products in the industry,” he says. “I would guess that 40 to 50 percent of the inquiries we get via our website these days are related to our Harvest Collection line. People want to learn more about these products, e.g., what their properties are. But the key question to ask — despite this tremendous interest — is ‘If traditional plastics went away today, are alternatives ready to step in?’ The an- swer is no. There are not enough suppliers BioBag manufactures a full range of bags to fill that demand, but it is growing.” for food waste and yard trimmings The price gap between single-use items collection, as well as makes shopping bags that are compostable and those that are not for retail stores. An extruder in the BioBag is still significant, he adds. “Typically food- production facility is shown above. service operators want something that is Table 1. Compostable bags only (all BPI 1 certified) Resin(s) Company Brand Products Used Al-Pack Al-Pack Retail food and yard waste Co-polyester bags, shopping bags compostable resins Alte-Rego Corp. Compost-A-Bag Retail bags, commercial n/a size food waste bags BioBag USA BioBag Retail and commercial food Novamont’s Mater-Bi and yard waste bags, commercial shopping bags BioBag Canada, Inc. BioBag Retail food and yard waste bags, Novamont’s Mater-Bi commercial food waste bags, commercial yard waste bags Cortec EcoWorks, EcoFilm Commercial food waste bags, Corn-based resin with retail food waste bags in some polyesters markets, cyrogenic bags for commercial use Farnell Packaging, Ltd. BioTrue 2, 30, 32, 45, 90 gallon bags BASF Ecoflex Fortune Plastics Comp-Lete Bags for retail, commercial, Novamont’s Mater-Bi institutional use Heritage Bag Co. BioTuf Bags for commercial, institutional, HB956 from industrial use Heritage Plastics, Inc. Northern Technologies Natur-Tec Bags; films available to converters Proprietary blend Plastics Solutions EcoSafe 6400 Commercial and retail food waste bags Proprietary blend Compostable Bags and bin liners, commercial and retail yard waste bags, specialty bags for trade shows, store use and packaging Poly-America L.P. Husky Eco-Guard Full line of lawn and leaf Starch-based Lawn & Leaf and food waste bags resin W. Ralston Bag and BioSak Compostable Kitchen curbside (incl. organics bin Novamont’s Mater-Bi Film Manufacturer Brown Bag liners), yard waste bags in various sizes for retail, ICI use 1BPI=Biodegradable Products Institute (www.bpiworld.org); all BPI-certified bags meet ASTM 6400 standard. BIOCYCLE JULY 2007 39 functional but won’t drive up the price of their supplies. The charge for a hamburger with a bag of potato chips and a drink may There are a handful be $5. We want to be sure the packaging is of companies that not a significant portion of that $5 bill. The trick is to find customers willing to go the blend resin pellets extra step to have that zero waste ability — to bring in products that do what they are supposed to do, e.g., not melt, and then with other additives The Natur-Tec brand of lawn and leaf bags have the internal capability to capture that is made by Northern Technologies, which to give the end waste stream and bring it to a composting uses its proprietary blend of resins and facility that will take care of it.” additives. products the Cole sees two types of customers in this necessary particular market — one that has done all ed to go. By this point, the resins used to their homework and has figured out how to make biodegradable bags fell into two gen- properties. completely close the loop and not have it eral categories — natural and synthetic. cost them more, and the other that wants Stated the article, “Natural (or biopoly- to buy the Harvest line — with or without mers) are based largely on renewable re- the ability to close the loop — because it sources and include polylactic acid (PLA), makes them feel better about their pur- cellulosics and starches, and polyhdrox- chasing decisions. yalkanoates. Synthetic polymers are made Frederic Sheer of Cereplast, which for- from petroleum-based feedstocks and in- mulates resins used to make a range of clude polyester and polyethylene polymers. compostable products, has been in the An example of a biodegradable, synthetic compostable and biodegradable plastics polymer is polycaprolactone, a thermoplas- industry for many years. He believes the tic polyester resin. Most biodegradable key factor to achieve a critical mass is to be plastic bags are made from a blend of natu- able to deliver a large quantity of resin ral and synthetic polymers.” This catego- with consistent quality at competitive pric- rization still holds true 12 years later. ing with traditional petroleum-based An ASTM (American Society for Testing resins. “At Cereplast, we primarily focus and Materials) standard had been updated on resins that can compete with their in 1994 (ASTM D-5488-94d) to establish petroleum counterparts,” he explains. “For terminology for compostable and example, we are focusing on injection biodegradable packaging. Eventually, the molding and thermoforming resins that we ASTM standards were refined into the cur- offer at pricing as low as $0.65/lb. In terms rent and widely accepted specifications — of production, we have increased our ca- ASTM D6400 “Specifications for Com- pacity from 14 million pounds to 55 million postable Plastics” and ASTM D6868 “Spec- pounds in 2007, and we anticipate in- ification for Biodegradable Plastic Coat- creasing it again.” ings on Paper and other Compostable Substrates.” The test methods and specifi- A BIT ‘O HISTORY cations found in ASTM D6400 and D6868 BioCycle has been reporting on alterna- mimic what takes place in well-run munic- tives to traditional petroleum-based plas- ipal or commercial composting facilities. tics for about 20 years. In the late 1980s, as There are three key tests involved. All are growing numbers of municipalities began referenced in the ASTM D6400 and D6868 to roll out curbside collection and compost- standards. The first measures the ability of ing programs for yard trimmings, it quick- the product or material to be converted to ly became evident that plastic bags com- carbon dioxide by the organisms found in a peted with odors as Enemy #1 at the compost pile at an acceptable rate. The sec- composting sites. They became entwined in ond test measures the ability of the mate- the turning equipment and when shred- rials to fragment, so that products do not ded, were both a source of litter and an end clog the screening equipment or detract product contaminant.