Your Top 10 Plastics Questions, Answered

Yes! Plastic is derived from crude oil. Banning plastic puts pressure on its producer, the fossil fuel industry. Plastic bans also bring attention to climate change, pushes customers to reuse, and encourages businesses to create reusable options.

2. I’ve heard that China used to buy plastic recyclables from the US but has cut back? What should I do with my plastic recycling?

Every town has a different situation. To find out what your recycling program’s current policy is, contact your municipality. If they’re no longer taking certain plastics, try to avoid those in the store as much as you can. You can also inquire about local drop off facilities for those types of plastic.

3. How can I avoid bringing home plastic packaging from the supermarket? Some of this plastic is not recyclable through the municipal system.

Opt for produce that isn’t wrapped in plastic and bring your own bag to carry them in. If possible, buy from a farmers market where food generally is loose. If it’s a product you love, contact the company asking for non-plastic wrapping. Your consumer voice matters!

4. What are microplastics, and what kind of plastic is most likely to become a microplastic?

Microplastics are pieces of plastic that are 5 mm or smaller. They can be created to be that size–such as microbeads in soaps—and they can be broken bits of a larger plastic or material with plastic parts. A Friends of the Earth study of UK waters found that the four leading contributors are car tires (due to abrasion on the road), external paint (from buildings and road markings), plastic pellets (used to make plastic products), and synthetic fibers from clothing.

5. Are certain plastics worse than others?

Yes. Non-recyclable and non-reusable plastics are the worst in that they take several lifetimes to break down and leach chemicals like BPA in the process. Plastic straws have taken the limelight in the single-use arena, but abandoned fishing gear, plastic bags, cigarette butts, and food packaging (including water bottles) are the more commonly found debris in the ocean.

6. What do the numbers on the bottom of plastic products mean?

Plastic is coded with numbers 1-7 that designate material. Not all plastics are recyclable, and some aren’t reusable. Refer to your local recycling center’s guidelines of what numbers are accepted at search.earth911.com

7. Why is so little plastic recycled?

Plastic is the most complicated material to recycle because each number designates a different polymer design–in other words, a #1 can’t be recycled with a #5 because they melt at different temperatures. Municipal funding levels, community pressure, and demand for recycled plastics determine what gets recycled. Unlike metals like aluminum that can be recycled indefinitely, plastics degrade each time they’re processed, making recycling more expensive than manufacturing new plastic.

8. Is it ever environmentally helpful to have plastic-wrapped food to keep food from being wasted?

Plastic wrap extends shelf life by regulating contact with air. Since food waste has a larger carbon footprint than any country except China and the US, reducing waste is important. However, alternatives to plastic wrap like Bee’s Wrap, Green America’s People and Planet Award Winner, achieve the same goal while being reusable and eco-friendly.

9. Most vegan non-food products are made of plastic, like faux leather shoes. Is there a better alternative?

Many vegan clothing companies use recycled plastic as a leather-free alternative, but plastics in clothing still break down into microplastics that marine life consume. Consider buying secondhand.

10. When we ban plastic, doesn’t that force us to use other materials that are more expensive and energy-intensive? Shouldn’t we keep using it, but get better at recycling it?

While plastic bans are a recent trend, the reality is that plastic has become so integral to society that it won’t disappear soon. We should get better at recycling it, but that alone won’t solve the plastic problem. While alternatives may be more energy-intensive and expensive than plastic, reusables last longer than single-use plastic and may be indefinitely recyclable or compostable, making their overall carbon footprint lower. Lowering our consumption of plastics, not buying to begin with, and opting for reusables are less energy-intensive than consuming more.

Interested in learning more?

Here are eleven easy ways to kick the plastic habit. And a challenge: could you go entirely plastic-free?

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Below is our Top 6 most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). If you have one that hasn’t been answered below or want more detail, please contact us! We love chatting about our amazing products and answering all kinds of questions! Believe me, we’ve had some doozies in our day!

What are BioBags made from?

The short answer:
BioBags are made from a resin derived from plants, vegetable oils and compostable polymers.

The more detailed answer:
BioBag® products are made from a compostable resin named Mater-Bi®. Mater-Bi® is produced by Novamont, an Italian research company dedicated to environmental alternatives to polyethylene-based plastics. Mater-Bi® is an innovative family of bioplastics that uses substances obtained from plants, such as but not limited to, non-genetically modified corn starch, and biodegradable/compostable polymers obtained both from renewable raw materials and fossil raw materials. Novamont’s policy is to acquire and use exclusively natural, non-GM, raw materials (such as starch). Most of our products (3 gallon, 13 gallon, sandwich bags, produce bags and liners) have a non-GMO third party certification. To read more about Mater-Bi®, visit Novamont’s website.

Where are BioBags made?

The majority of BioBags are Manufactured in the USA with resin (mentioned above) sourced from Italy. More specifically, we create the glorious BioBag in a magical place called San Leandro, California! A few of our products are manufactured in Thailand and Estonia.

Where can I purchase BioBags?

We don’t sell directly to consumers but BioBags can be easily purchased online and at many natural and traditional retailers. To find some of those retailers, see our How to Order page. If you are a wholesaler, distributor, non-profit, government entity or any other business organization and would like to purchase BioBags, contact us directly for pricing and to set up an account. We only have one case minimums and our customer service is unparalleled!

I see your bags are labeled “COMPOSTABLE”. What does that mean and what is the difference between Compostable and Biodegradable?

We are SO glad you asked this question.

The short answer:
BioBags are certified compostable meaning they can be consumed by micro-organisms in an industrial setting and meet the testing specifications found in the ASTM D6400. Our bags are digested by these microbial bacteria, along with food and yard waste, to become soil or fertilizer. Some of our products are even home compost certified (European) and can be composted in your home composter. Pretty neat, huh?

The more detailed answer:
Check out our whole web page dedicated to the difference between compostable and biodegradable along with our certifications.

How is a BioBag Compostable bag different from a traditional polyethylene plastic bag?

A BioBag is not meant to last forever. It is meant to collect organic waste and be turned into compost along with that organic waste. Because a BioBag is not made of polyethylene, the bag can start to break down when exposed to microorganisms that are found in the ground and on organic waste.

For best results:

• Use within one year of purchase
• Store in a cool, dry place away from excessive heat. Try the fridge or freezer. Those work great for us in the office!
• Change out your used BioBag every 3-5 days

What happens to BioBags in the landfill?

The short answer:
Like ALL things (including food waste, paper and all else), Virtually Nothing.

The more detailed answer:
BioBags are designed to be composted and returned naturally back to the earth. If BioBags are placed in an “open” or “turned” space like a compost facility they will decompose at a rate similar to other biodegradable materials in the same setting. If BioBags are placed in an anaerobic (air-locked) landfill and deprived of oxygen and the existence of the micro-organisms that “eat” naturally biodegradable materials, their ability to decompose will be severely restricted. This is true of all biodegradable materials placed in this setting, including paper, yard waste, and food waste. The majority of landfills in the U.S. are modern anaerobic (air-locked) landfills.

These modern landfills are designed to safely entomb waste and to protect the environment from the liquids and gases that are produced during the very slow breakdown of waste. The impediment of degradation is because the lack of exposure to air, water and sunlight which is needed for degradation. Therefore, by design, modern landfills greatly retard the degradation process to reduce the by-products that might otherwise contaminate groundwater and the air. They are also specially designed so that the land can be used after the landfill is capped and closed. Parks, golf courses and even airports have been built on top of closed landfills!

As a consumer, you should be quite suspicious of any manufacturer making claims that their products will biodegrade, degrade or “go away” quickly in a landfill. There are many Federal and State Regulations preventing false claims such as these.

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