Welcome to the Solutions Database,
a guide to technologies, strategies, and best practices for reducing plastic waste

Following benefits need to be considered carefully since compostable packaging can provide value in specific, targeted applications, but presents no blanket solution. Trade-offs need to be carefully considered on a case-by-case basis:

• Ties to the capturing and diverting of food waste: Compostable packaging can support capturing and diverting food waste, helping to avoid food wasted ending up in landfills releasing methane (1,2). For packaging heavily contaminated with food scraps and wet residues, compostable packaging can be a solution. Examples include food waste collection bags, prepared food packaging, teabags or stickers on fruit or vegetables (1,2).
• Providing a circular end-of-life for items that are very unlikely to be recycled: Examples include small format packaging (e.g., cutlery, straws etc.), non-recyclable formats (e.g., multilaminate films) or plastic items such as produce stickers that contaminate composting facilities.
• Marine and soil degradable benefits for specific cases: If the use case of products is intended for a marine or soil environment, marine or soil degradable certifications are suitable, such as for agricultural mulch film. The highest value and optimal end-of-life scenario for packaging is not to leak into the environment. Therefore, avoid landfilling and leakage of compostables but circulate materials as resources as long as possible (4).
• Supporting biological cycles of the circular economy: Compostable packaging can be designed as a biological nutrient that, once it has served its useful life, will decompose in a composting environment without negatively affecting soil quality (2).

• Adherence to guidelines: Specific guidelines should be followed to ease the identification of compostable packaging by consumers, composters, and others while reducing contamination and improving composting programs. Brands should follow relevant international compostability standards (e.g., ISO 18606). For home compostability, these standards are adapted by national certification programs (1,2). The BPI certification scheme has established requirements to be met by compostable packaging. To avoid unintended consequences, ensure that compostables create value at their end of life, and clearly communicate proper disposal routes to consumers and composters. Certification of compostable packaging is helpful (4).
• Design compostable plastics only with clear intent: Compostable materials should not be used as an acceptance of packaging being littered or leaking to the environment rather than being handled properly at their end-of-life. As outlined above, however, compostable packaging may be beneficial for specific formats and contexts including packaging heavily contaminated with food or small packaging where recycling is not a viable solution.
• Understand and design for available infrastructure: While composting infrastructure is evolving around the world, it is still in a nascent and highly regionalized state, especially when it comes to consumer materials and packaging. Composting facilities vary greatly regarding accepted materials; some accept only green waste (e.g., yard waste) while others accept food waste from commercial sources but not residential sources.
• Source sustainably: Compostable packaging material needs to be credibly certified as sustainably sourced or based on agricultural waste. Companies should use renewable materials from responsibly managed sources so that the composting process returns carbon to the atmosphere that was captured during the material's production (1).
• Communicate and label clearly: To help both consumers to properly dispose of compostables as well as composters to distinguish between compostable and conventional plastic, make clear which packaging is compostable and what should be done with it. Prominent labelling (e.g., the How2Compost label), striping, color-coding, standardized certification logos, and consumer education are important. Consumers tend to have a hard time understanding nuances around compostables and how “compostable” is different from “biodegradable” (1,2,3).
• Follow the 'all-or-nothing' approach: Within closed systems (e.g., events/locations/food service), use only compostable or no compostable plastics in each application to avoid confusion with recycling. For open systems (e.g., residential collection), be mindful of possible contamination of recycling system, of composting infrastructure and labeling/consumer education issues as discussed (1).
• Consider rolling out in specific markets with dedicated composting infrastructure: Compostables can work as part of a dedicated (often closed) system within a specific region, which includes appropriate collection and processing infrastructure for compostable materials (this includes food and organics).

• Work to collaboratively invest in increasing composting infrastructure: To ensure compostable packaging does not end up in landfills, brands using compostable packaging can help grow infrastructure accepting compostable packaging through investments and collaborations (4).
• Support the establishment of dedicated collection systems: Even certified compostable packaging may not biodegrade in all natural environments and their leakage from collection systems can have negative environmental impacts. Ideally, brands using compostable packaging actively help develop collection systems that works together with, and promotes, the collection of food waste. (1)
• Cross-industry alignment: Try to ensure the packaging format composts in a timeframe that is not only compliant with relevant composting standards, but aligns with the timeframes expected by the composting industry within your geography (1).
• Support food and food waste legislation: To drive new composting infrastructure and collection programs, clearer food waste legislation is needed. Similarly, supporting legislation clearly outlining which materials should be used for food contact can help to limit issues around look-alike packaging. Compostability may be the best pathway for certain applications (such as those noted above) to reduce consumer confusion when disposing of packaging (2).
• Purchase finished compost or other end-products: The success of the composting industry depends on the strength of the end-markets for finished compost. Companies can support this by purchasing finished compost or advocating and investing in wider applications and end market development of compost (2).
• Activate composting behavior in consumers: Even when compostable packaging is not widely accepted at facilities, brands can begin to activate composting behavior in consumers by encouraging them to compost their food waste, carefully guiding consumers about how to manage any compostable packaging in those circumstances. (2)

Examples of certified compostable products can include:

• Cups, containers and cutlery made from rigid compostable plastics
• Plates, bowls, containers made from compostable fiber-based materials (e.g., bagasse, wheat straw, other molded pulp)
• Cups for hot beverages made from paperboard with compostable coatings (e.g., hot cups)
• Flexible packaging, liners and other films for food and non-food uses made from flexible compostable plastics (5).

Examples where compostable materials are typically used today include tea bags, compostable bags for compost collection in cities, or packaging materials that often end up in organic waste streams (e.g., fruit/vegetable labels). Compostables may also serve a beneficial role for small format applications (sachets and small wraps) where recycling is not a viable solution due to food contamination or the small size of the package – if they can be kept out of the recycling stream. It can also be utilized effectively in food service applications when it is likely to be contaminated with food and can be separated from the recycling stream. Applications for which compostable plastic packaging is used would ideally be consistent across the industry to avoid cross-contamination of compostable and recyclable material streams.

• Natura: Indonesian company Greenhope has created Ecoplas, a cassava-based and biodegradable bioplastic made out of certified fair trade cassava, driving positive environmental and social impact. It has been widely used to make shopping bags, landfill cover, garbage bags, packaging, etc.
• Natura: Avani aims to close the circular economy loop by providing customizable eco-friendly packaging made from renewable resources. The company provides a wide range of biodegradable & compostable packaging. The materials used are from cassava, bagasse, PLA, and paper.