Check out our top 5 biodegradable packaging finds!
1. New process makes ‘biodegradable’ plastics truly compostable
Biodegradable packaging have been advertised as one solution to the plastic pollution problem bedeviling the world, but today's "compostable" plastic bags, utensils and cup lids don't break down during typical composting and contaminate other recyclable plastics, creating headaches for recyclers.
University of California, Berkeley, scientists have now invented a way to make this biodegradable packaging break down more easily, with just heat and water, within a few weeks, solving a problem that has flummoxed the plastics industry and environmentalists.
2. Five amazing biodegradable packaging inventions that could potentially replace plastic
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zwvmwnb
We hear the word 'biodegradable' a lot - from teabags to toiletries, many products are starting to go zero-waste to reduce plastic.
When something is ‘biodegradable’, it can be decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms. Everything breaks down eventually, but the problem with plastics is that this process can take up to 1000 years. They’re more likely to break apart into micro-pieces which can cause harm to animal and plant life. Mismanaged plastics can also release harmful chemicals into the surrounding soil or water sources which can have a dangerous effect on ecosystems.
Luckily, there are many efforts being put towards creating more sustainable products and materials which take a fraction of the time to break down. Here are five amazing biodegradable packaging inventions that can potentially replace plastic.
3. Food giants respond to worries over packaging
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56770732
Since 2000, the plastics industry has manufactured as much plastic as all the preceding years combined, a World Wildlife Fund report in 2019 found. "The production of virgin plastic has increased 200-fold since 1950, and has grown at a rate of 4% a year since 2000," the report says.
This has spurred companies to replace single-use plastic with biodegradable and compostable packaging designed to dramatically reduce the toxic footprint plastics leave behind.
4. Packaging developer Choose toasts 'world's first' biodegradable paper bottle
The fully biodegradable and compostable packaging innovation has been developed in Edinburgh with support from Innovate UK and Sky Ocean Ventures
5. Biodegradable glitter backed by Sir David Attenborough
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-manchester-47789342
A firm is putting the sparkle back into glitter by creating a biodegradable version which does not contain plastic.
Sir David Attenborough who highlighted the dangers of plastic waste on marine life in BBC One's Blue Planet II, is backing Rochdale-based Bioglitter, an environmentally-friendly product.
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