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Mallard wrote:That is good news for our future environment. Well, if they are produced in a mass scale already, and quite affordable, what keeps us from using them? I don't see any degradable plastic bags in my location. (or I am just living in a cave? )

HippieHop wrote:There are quite a large number of biodegradable plastics available in the market nowadays and they are also very cheap since their production has been started in a Mass scale. One of the most important example is GrePlas. The production has been started in many countries from 2005.

VerdE wrote:

HippieHop wrote:There are quite a large number of biodegradable plastics available in the market nowadays and they are also very cheap since their production has been started in a Mass scale. One of the most important example is GrePlas. The production has been started in many countries from 2005.

It sounds great.. It's renewable, biodegradable and all that. But the fact of the matter is that you still have to grow the corn so you can extract the sugars to make the polylactide needed for the plastic substitute. Corn is already being consumed beyond it's means just to feed the population and produce the ethanol we use in our cars. What about the food shortages we're already seeing across the globe? Not to mention the pesticides you need to put into the soil to grow the corn?

I agree it's a better solution than the oil based plastics but perhaps there's a solution that doesn't affect so many other areas so adversely

stav wrote: Food crops being turned into fuel production for instance.. means less food for more people.