Home composting and industrial composting

There are two broad categories of composting, home composting and industrial composting. Home composting involves piling organic waste and aerating it over several weeks. An industrial compost facility optimizes the composting process by controlling oxygen content and temperature in a commercial facility to ensure rapid biodegradation of organic material to produce a high quality, toxic-free compost. Home composts also produce rich compost at the end of the process but may not maintain the right temperature and oxygen conditions for composting PLA products.

Composting is a circular economy solution that allows businesses to reduce their environmental impact by diverting organic waste from landfills instead of having it turned into nutrient-rich compost. Composting is a local organics solution that is processed in your region without relying on exports and has a huge positive impact on the environment.

Helps fight climate change by sequestering carbon into the soil and avoiding methane emissions from landfill

Is a natural fertilizer that allows farmers to grow more food locally

Is an amazing soil conditioner that helps retain moisture and fight droughts

The terms ‘biodegradable’ and ‘compostable’ are not equivalent or interchangeable. ‘Biodegradable’ simply means something will be broken down by microbes over time, which is true for most materials on the planet. Since this term applies to almost everything, it is a meaningless claim that has been abused through greenwashing.

In contrast, ‘compostable’ means something will break down in a defined amount of time and in set conditions (humidity levels, temperature, etc), such as the ones encountered in home compost bins or in composting facilities.

Like any other environmental claim though, it needs to be substantiated. That is why our compostable products are certified. These testing programs also ensure that the packaging does not hinder compost quality and that the compost produced can safely be applied to land.

Good-bye, Plastic’s home compostable ranges conform to home compost standards. thid means they will decompose in standard home compost conditions within 180 days. However, the actual rate of biodegradation will depend on the temperature and humidity of the compost pile.

Food packaging must be clean from food and beverage residue to be eligible for recycling. If contaminated products end up in the recycling they can send a whole truckload to a landfill!

All of the products we sell are generally accepted in co-mingled recycling when clean.

When food packaging is contaminated with food and beverage residue, it becomes extremely difficult to recycle through the regular recycling streams and usually ends up in a landfill.

Composting is an organics recycling solution that processes compostable food packaging and organic waste in one stream. It is processed locally with no overseas exporting and returns nutrients to the soil. Composting is the ideal waste solution for the food and beverage industry.

PLA bioplastic is considered inert in landfill, however our fiber-based products biodegrade in the absence of oxygen. This creates methane, a potent greenhouse gas. This is why it is so important to compost our products after use. Products like paper straws, wooden cutlery, napkins and unlined papers can be composted in backyard compost bins while products containing PLA need to be processed by an industrial composting facility.