Our Green Streets Blog

It's about time for compostable food packaging! Source: Environmental Leader & Stalk Markets

For those of us who get sick of opening plastic packaging that has no hope for recycling or composting, or for the anything even remotely related to being biodegradable, good news is arriving on the news wire, according to Environmental Leader.

“StalkMarket Products, a provider of compostable tableware and food packaging, has unveiled what it calls the world’s first Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) certified compostable Ingeo hot cup and lid system. BPI certification is based on standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM).

“Replacing petroleum-based products with renewable materials, the containers are 100% compostable and are manufactured from Ingeo plant-based plastics from NatureWorks LLC.

“The containers meet the requirements of ASTM D6400 or ASTM D6868. The Planet+ line of compostable products withstand more than 200 degrees F of wet heat and compost in 60 to 90 days in commercial composting facilities, according to the Portland, Oregon company.

“As more companies implement green practices, there is a growing need for sustainable packaging. Food companies that have recently switched to compostable packaging include Gingerbread Folk, Twinings, KFC and Haigh’s Chocolates.”

We hope to see many more companies joining this list. Other companies might take this example seriously, especially electronics manufacturers. I had to struggle opening a damnable plastic package containing a wireless mouse. Not only is the experience of opening packages like this enough to set one cursing, knowing that the opened package has only one destination left — the landfill — is reason for grieving.