Bioplastics and biopolymers—are they really biodegradable?
To some that might seem a tautology, because they have to be, right?
The answer is no, though it’s a bit more complicated than that. Not all biodegradable polymers are bio-based, and just because a brand might say their packaging is biodegradable doesn’t always mean that it’s compostable. Compostable packaging materials are exceptional, but if they end up in your recycling bin, it can potentially contaminate the recycling stream. Ultimately, those rejected compostables will end up in a landfill, and then we’re right back where we started.
