We hear a lot about biodegradable plastics, nowadays. Some of  you may have even bought this “magic” plastic that ideally could be thrown in your composter together with your leftovers. Unfortunately, it is not that simple.

What is biodegradable plastic made of?

Can it really biodegrade?

And finally, can plastics ever>truly be environmentally friendly?

In this short video, you will find it all out!

Nature doesn’t throw anything away…everything is repurposed!!

Biodegradation occurs when microorganisms convert waste into nutrients. According to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, there are three main ways of biodegradation:

• PRIMARY: chemical alteration of the property of the substance;
• ENVIRONMENTALLY ACCEPTABLE: biodegradation of the undesirable properties of that compound;
• ULTIMATE: complete breakdown of a compound (to either fully oxidised or reduced simple molecules)

Plastics made from fossil fuels are NOT BIODEGRADABLE because most bacteria simply don’t like eating them! This type of plastic can remain in the environment for up to 1000 years!

To address this, scientists created “biodegradable plastics”. These are petrochemical-derived plastics, supplemented with chemical compounds that help microorganisms to break them down.

Unfortunately, biodegradation only happens in specific industrial facilities, under conditions that create a specific cocktail of bacteria, heat, and temperature which make the biodegradation process possible. These conditions do not occur in nature, which is why we can’t throw biodegradable plastics in the compost!

Also, be careful not to confuse biodegradable plastic with “bioplastic”! The latter is made from organic materials (primarily from corn) that are transformed into a new substance called polylactic acid, or PLA.

Let’s investigate more!