We go on about our Compostable Bin Liners pretty often. Why? Because they're just great! In fact, they're so great, we couldn't resist telling you even more about them. Read on to find out the top 5 things we love about them!
1. They're completely plastic free
These bags are made entirely from renewable, natural materials such as corn starch. They’re certified EN13432 Compostable and carry the Seedling and OK Compost logos as proof. Achieving this certificate involves managing all the raw materials that go into the bags, including the ink which is water-based and safe in soil.
You don’t need to worry about where the materials come from either! The corn starch and plant oils used for these bags come from EU grown maize. Of the 7.8million tonnes of maize the EU grows, only 1% becomes bioplastic, like these. What’s more, The Compost Bag Company don’t use palm or soya, nor use virgin soil or contribute to deforestation in any way.
2. They're extra strong
If a bag is weak, sadly we’d need to simply fill it less full or even 'double bag', which means a ‘cheaper’ bag could cost twice as much and use twice the resources. These bags are so strong, we can be confident using them and are able to use as few resources as possible.
3. They're made in the EU
The bags are made in Belgium, from one of the closest factories available to the UK. With most compostable bags being mass-produced outside of Europe in places such as China, these bags will use significantly less CO2 to reach you.
Not only do these bags use less CO2 coming from Belgium, they're also only a few days old, with a full 12-18 months before they begin to biodegrade and weaken.
4. They're manufactured by another eco-company!
In fact, for several years the factory making the bags has been powered by 100% renewable energy, with coastal wind power providing all the energy for the factory. As well, the factory is certified 'zero emissions' as it cleans and recirculates all water used in bag production. They even re-use their waste materials! Scrap material is re-melted into granules, cleaned and blended back at the start of the process.
5. End of life
These bags are intended to stay inside a closed loop system, collecting food scraps and being treated in organic process, back into soil improver. But don’t worry if they make their way into the environment, it's not harmful. The bags will biodegrade slowly, depending on how much oxygen is around, just as a twig does.
If for any reason these bags end up in plastic that is being saved for recycling, it will be a contaminant much the same as a paper label, dirt or any other things clinging to plastic bottle. Thankfully the amount is so low that the plastic recycling industry can cope with the few occasions it happens.
And don’t worry too much if they're going to end up in landfill or get incinerated, we'd still recommend using compostable bags! As with any waste that has a value to our economy and should stay within our environment, it seems a pity to landfill or incinerate biopolymers. But if they end up this way, then at least we only wasted materials a few years old rather than a few million years old!
