I am interested in an alternative to PET bottles for home cleaning products. Does anyone have any suggestions for resources into biodegradable or other more sustainable options? Thanks in advance. --Savitree
Who said that the so called biodegradable PET (actually polylactate, PLA) is a "sustainable opton"??
It is a naive opton and pure Greenwashing. Unless of course you want to greenwash too for marketing reasons.
I don't actually think that I said that biodegradable PET is a sustainable option. I did not put the two words together in my request. I think I said that I am interested in an alternative to PET that is biodegradable or sustainable. Perhaps I don't know what I am talking about but was hoping to get educated here. Or at least guided in the right direction.
What is "sustainable" packaging? I could send you by mail my recent article on the subject. If you are interested contact me at stas@otenet.gr [11]
Savitree; allow me to try to assist. First, as "sustainability" goes in all different directions, what are you seeking to accomplish? For example, weight reduction of packaging? Biodegradability? Recyclability? Compostability? All are considered sustainable, but they will lead you in different directions.
PET bottles (mostly in a clear format) are recyclable. That said, less than 25% according to the last study I read were actually recycled. HDPE is also a recyclable resin. Again, at least in the US, a low percentage of these packages are actually recycled. Technically speaking, again from what I have read, fiber based packaging is recycled the most. If you were packaging liquid products, my belief is their would be some type of barrier property, which would not lend itself to being recycled.
As I have noted on previous post, the term biodegradable to me is a joke. If the materials end up in a landfill, they may take 50 - 100 years, if not longer, to actually witness biodegration. This isn't biodegradable from my viewpoint. Compostability is good, if you follow the steps required. Very few ares offer composting options, thus the consumer would most likely have to do this themselves. The question is, how many people will actually do so?
I don't know if this helps. It is very murky water, I think you simply need to further define your objective related to sustainability, then proceed to explore deeper.
Thanks, Thomas. We currently use PET clear, and for economic reasons, we are looking to shrink our package size from 32 oz to 16 oz. This means more plastic. I thought there was a technology out there that made more "biodegradable" packaging, meaning if you throw it out (in a landfill), it will only take a fraction of the time to decompose. That's how much I know. I see now that perhaps for this to happen, it sounds like the material has to be composted rather than end up in a landfill. I do get that it is ultimately up to each individual to recycle and/ or compost-- or perhaps not purchase products with so much packaging-- to be most sustainable.
My personal interest lies in doing my part in finding packaging that will have the least amount of impact on this planet.
Perhaps I am already achieving it in the way that I can. At Blissful Home, our mission is to help forge a connection between home, body and planet. This connection may be the critical piece in affecting how each person takes action on many levels. However, I won't stop looking.
Hi, Savitree. I've spent a great deal of time researching the potential for biodegradable plastics and industrial composting, and I have to say that I agree wholeheartedly with Thomas. Although biodegradable plastics like NatureWorks' Ingeo have great potential, innovation and production have far surpassed large-scale efforts to establish metropolitan waste management of biodegradable materials. In the Chicago area, for instance, there's only one industrial composter certified to process biodegradable plastics, and they only accept very large amounts of feedstock. Your average consumer will toss a biodegradable plastic spray bottle in the blue bin, and that bottle will end up in a landfill.
I also feel compelled to point out that nothing biodegrades in a landfill--not even food, least of all plastic resins--because landfills are not designed to allow for biodegradation. The Biodegradable Products Institute, which maintains a database of biodegradable products, has repeatedly refuted this myth (http://www.bpiworld.org [12]). This is perhaps one of the most troublesome common misconceptions facing efforts in sustainable packaging.
I support your efforts here to explore options in sustainable packaging and your work at Blissful Home. My advice would be to reduce plastics as much as possible, use only the most commonly recycled plastics (#1 PET and #4 HDPE), and switch to paper wherever possible. Best of luck to you!
Links:
[1] http://www.greenerpackage.com/print/2053
[2] http://www.greenerpackage.com/printmail/2053
[3] http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=20
[4] http://www.greenerpackage.com/
[5] http://www.greenerpackage.com/discuss
[6] http://www.greenerpackage.com/discuss/bottles
[7] http://www.greenerpackage.com/bottles
[8] http://www.greenerpackage.com/compost_biodegrade
[9] http://www.greenerpackage.com/non-food
[10] http://www.greenerpackage.com/members/savitree_kaur
[11] mailto:stas@otenet.gr
[12] http://www.bpiworld.org
[13] http://www.greenerpackage.com/members/alexis
[14] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/1487
[15] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/1490
[16] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/1491
[17] http://www.greenerpackage.com/members/thomas_oris
[18] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/1500
[19] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/1502
[20] http://www.greenerpackage.com/members/miranda_dupont
[21] http://www.greenerpackage.com/comment/reply/2053/2248
[22] http://www.greenerpackage.com/user
[23] http://www.greenerpackage.com/filter/tips/1#filter-inline
[24] http://www.greenerpackage.com/filter/tips
Who said that the so called biodegradable PET (actually polylactate, PLA) is a "sustainable opton"??
It is a naive opton and pure Greenwashing. Unless of course you want to greenwash too for marketing reasons.
I don't actually think that I said that biodegradable PET is a sustainable option. I did not put the two words together in my request. I think I said that I am interested in an alternative to PET that is biodegradable or sustainable. Perhaps I don't know what I am talking about but was hoping to get educated here. Or at least guided in the right direction.
What is "sustainable" packaging? I could send you by mail my recent article on the subject. If you are interested contact me at stas@otenet.gr [11]
Savitree; allow me to try to assist. First, as "sustainability" goes in all different directions, what are you seeking to accomplish? For example, weight reduction of packaging? Biodegradability? Recyclability? Compostability? All are considered sustainable, but they will lead you in different directions.
PET bottles (mostly in a clear format) are recyclable. That said, less than 25% according to the last study I read were actually recycled. HDPE is also a recyclable resin. Again, at least in the US, a low percentage of these packages are actually recycled. Technically speaking, again from what I have read, fiber based packaging is recycled the most. If you were packaging liquid products, my belief is their would be some type of barrier property, which would not lend itself to being recycled.
As I have noted on previous post, the term biodegradable to me is a joke. If the materials end up in a landfill, they may take 50 - 100 years, if not longer, to actually witness biodegration. This isn't biodegradable from my viewpoint. Compostability is good, if you follow the steps required. Very few ares offer composting options, thus the consumer would most likely have to do this themselves. The question is, how many people will actually do so?
I don't know if this helps. It is very murky water, I think you simply need to further define your objective related to sustainability, then proceed to explore deeper.
Thanks, Thomas. We currently use PET clear, and for economic reasons, we are looking to shrink our package size from 32 oz to 16 oz. This means more plastic. I thought there was a technology out there that made more "biodegradable" packaging, meaning if you throw it out (in a landfill), it will only take a fraction of the time to decompose. That's how much I know. I see now that perhaps for this to happen, it sounds like the material has to be composted rather than end up in a landfill. I do get that it is ultimately up to each individual to recycle and/ or compost-- or perhaps not purchase products with so much packaging-- to be most sustainable.
My personal interest lies in doing my part in finding packaging that will have the least amount of impact on this planet.
Perhaps I am already achieving it in the way that I can. At Blissful Home, our mission is to help forge a connection between home, body and planet. This connection may be the critical piece in affecting how each person takes action on many levels. However, I won't stop looking.
Hi, Savitree. I've spent a great deal of time researching the potential for biodegradable plastics and industrial composting, and I have to say that I agree wholeheartedly with Thomas. Although biodegradable plastics like NatureWorks' Ingeo have great potential, innovation and production have far surpassed large-scale efforts to establish metropolitan waste management of biodegradable materials. In the Chicago area, for instance, there's only one industrial composter certified to process biodegradable plastics, and they only accept very large amounts of feedstock. Your average consumer will toss a biodegradable plastic spray bottle in the blue bin, and that bottle will end up in a landfill.
I also feel compelled to point out that nothing biodegrades in a landfill--not even food, least of all plastic resins--because landfills are not designed to allow for biodegradation. The Biodegradable Products Institute, which maintains a database of biodegradable products, has repeatedly refuted this myth (http://www.bpiworld.org [12]). This is perhaps one of the most troublesome common misconceptions facing efforts in sustainable packaging.
I support your efforts here to explore options in sustainable packaging and your work at Blissful Home. My advice would be to reduce plastics as much as possible, use only the most commonly recycled plastics (#1 PET and #4 HDPE), and switch to paper wherever possible. Best of luck to you!