Compostable versus Biodegradable Packaging

When an item is compostable, it should break down into natural elements at a rate consistent with other compostable materials and result in a nutritive soil amendment with no discernible residue or toxins. If this seems like many factors, it’s because it is; materials that do not fall under specific qualifications will pollute the soil rather than enrich it.

Truly compostable packaging must adhere to ASTM D6400 specifications: in a 12-week laboratory setting, it must disintegrate to an appropriate size, 60% of the organic carbon must be converted to CO2, and it must be at least 90% comparable to corresponding blank composts of two other plant species.

While these specifications help ensure that the resulting soil amendment is enriching, they highlight a big problem with non-organic compostable materials: even with the proper certifications, they leave pollutants behind. Compostable packaging may be marketed as something that will disappear into the soil, but a portion of that material will remain.

It’s important to note that just because something is certified compostable doesn’t mean it will biodegrade in any natural environment. You must check the compost parameters (e.g., whether it can only be industrially composted) and ensure it’s certified by a trusted entity, like BPI or TUV.

Biodegradable packaging means it can degrade from the action of naturally occurring microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, and algae. The term biodegradable makes no claims as to the amount of time needed for degradation or the attributes of the end product.

The difference between biodegradable and compostable materials is a Venn Diagram; all compostable items are considered biodegradable, but not all biodegradable items are compostable.

Biodegradable materials are not compostable if:

• they take too long to biodegrade.

• they biodegrade quickly but leave behind toxins and contaminants.

• they do not biodegrade in a compost environment.

Within biodegradability, there are different terms to know and understand.

• Naturally biodegradable: materials that will biodegrade in a natural environment.

• Landfill biodegradable: materials that biodegrade in a landfill. For biodegradation to occur, oxygen is needed. If a material is buried deep within a landfill, there’s insufficient oxygen, rendering biodegradability impossible. Landfill biodegradable refers to materials, usually bioplastics, with an additive that quickly degrades the material in such a setting.

When comparing compostable and biodegradable packaging, it’s important to note that biodegradable materials are not as regulated. Therefore, we recommend prioritizing certified compostable packaging over biodegradable packaging, as you can be more confident in its end-of-life result.

Although the term degradable technically applies to anything that breaks down—basically everything—it often refers to oxo-biodegradability. This material has been treated with an additive that will break it down on an accelerated timeline with the right combination of sunlight (UV), heat, or mechanical stress.

The end product of an oxo-biodegradable material could simply be tiny fragments of the original item as opposed to biomass, which is the result of composting. These small fragments could be biodegraded in some cases if they went into a second, highly controlled degradation phase.

Let’s start with the hard passes: degradable and landfill biodegradable materials almost always result in a net negative impact on the planet. We want to avoid the landfill as much as possible, and we’re trying to steer clear of pollutants, no matter how small. Because of this, we recommend avoiding these two end-of-life scenarios entirely.

For the other scenarios, we turn to the waste hierarchy. This approach, which promotes the circular economy, prioritizes materials end-of-life scenarios. Besides prevention and reuse, it places recycling as the ideal scenario, followed by composting.

While composting has many benefits, it often requires particular environments to be completed successfully. Furthermore, even certified compostable materials leave some residue, and industrial compost may contain material fragments or microplastics.

On the other hand, recycling ensures that the materials stay within circulation. That’s why our packaging is recycled—using 50-100% post-consumer materials—and recyclable; we believe in the most circular approach possible.

While we are constantly exploring novel materials, and there are some bioplastics that show promise, new materials are often unable to be recycled because recyclability requires scale to make it happen. In these cases, innovators tend to design for compostability because of how much the inputs drive the material’s environmental impact. If your company wants to explore new materials, we prioritize strict vetting of labeling and certification to ensure that it’s truly compostable and won’t end up in a landfill.

Read more about our stance on bioplastics here.

The composting process depends on your location and the composting service provider.

Eco-Cycle, one of the nation’s oldest eco-minded waste management organizations, has confirmed that they accept all of our paper-based packaging, even with the labels and tape that are typically adhered to them.

Individuals who send their packaging to a residential composting unit should remove any adhesives and shred the packaging to speed up the composting process. That said, we have heard from many home composters that have no problem using them as is or simply torn them a few times to make them fit in a composting bin.

If you are a home composter and use your compost for an organic home garden, keep all of this out of your compost pile, as there may be ink or glue residues you wouldn't want in organic soil.

Our 100% recycled corrugated boxes and paper mailers can be recycled into new paper products 5-6 more times. The carbon footprint of recycling them (leading to recycled products that do not require virgin, energy-intensive raw materials) is better than composting them.

The only 100% paper-based items that should be composted instead of recycled include wet or soiled items such as greasy pizza boxes, paper mailers that you accidentally spilled a jar of pasta on, paper towels, and napkins.

Unlike materials like paper, hemp, and natural cotton, plastic should only be considered compostable if it has a clear label indicating it as such—either “Certified Compostable” by a reputable certifying body or #7 PLA (the PLA MUST be in or below the recycle sign for this to be the case). Confusingly, this PLA symbol indicates that an item is NOT recyclable but is compostable in industrial settings. "Biodegradable packaging" without clear icons or certification should not be composted.

Plastic packaging with the proper labels should go to a commercial composting facility. In almost all instances, they should not go to residential composting units (though minimal plastic packaging may clearly state that it is suitable for home composts).

Unlike paper, compostable plastic like PLA needs to be well-controlled and have higher temperatures to biodegrade. Even in those conditions, it takes up to six months to compost. Commercial composting facilities often grind these compostable plastics to speed up the process.

Do not recycle certified compostable plastic items unless they have a clear “recyclable” sign with a number. If you do not have access to commercial composting in your region, throw any compostable but not recyclable packaging away with all landfill-bound trash.

Recyclable plastic packaging should have a clear label that indicates it as such, with a number in the “chasing arrows” recycling sign that guides as to how to recycle the item best.

Typically, poly mailers are LDPE #4 or #2, though other types of plastic packaging exist. #4 and #2 LDPE can and should be recycled at grocery store drop-offs.

We recommend recycling if a material is both recyclable and certified compostable. In most cases, plastic recycling has a more favorable carbon footprint than composting.

EcoEnclose’s poly mailers are recyclable, and we strongly encourage consumers to drop these off at grocery stores along with their plastic shopping bags.

These items are sometimes recyclable and should have the chasing arrows recyclable sign, with a corresponding number to indicate this. If that is the case, recycle this packaging accordingly.

Unfortunately, these items should be sent to the landfill if they are not recyclable. Most of these items in a landfill will not biodegrade rapidly (because they require specific microbes or sunlight to begin degrading). It will act relatively similarly to traditional plastic.

However, it is still far better to direct these goods to the landfill when the alternatives are composting and recycling (where they will contaminate the waste stream) or tossing it away as litter.

EcoEnclose’s 100% recycled poly mailers are recyclable, and we strongly encourage everyone to recycle them by dropping them off with other plastic bags at any grocery store drop-off. Our poly mailers are made with recycled traditional plastic resin (rather than virgin bio-based resin). We have no additives that make it break down or oxy-degrade faster than plastic’s normal degradation process.

Check out our sustainable packaging framework to learn why we have prioritized recycled, recyclable bags as the most eco-friendly packaging strategy and have decided not to pursue biobased, compostable packaging.