Are you up on the play of Biodegradable Plastic Straws?
Biodegradable Plastic Straws
We’ve talked bans, we’ve talked bad plastic, and how it takes like a million years for one straw to decompose right? So, what about the murky areas of biodegradable “plastic straws” do they
- Biodegrade properly,
- How long does it take?
- Is there a button I press to make them biodegrade?
- And this plastic is allowed, right?
With our limited research that we were able to conduct due to there not being any black and white answers, this is what we were able to find. I think what has happened to be perfectly honest with you is the “Biodegradable Solution” came out as a band-aid fix by big companies and not much research has actually been done. I think with the laws / single-use bans popping up that governments have blanketed the ban with any Single-Use Plastic – unless needed by emergency service and health personnel.
a - I found this from our friends @eorth.com.au “Compostable straws, and other compostable plastics won't compost themselves, and the majority of them require industrial composting in order to break down. "From my understanding, the three hero States(those that have implemented the change); QLD, SA, and VIC don’t have “Industrial Composting Facilities” required to break down Biodegradable Straws.
b- In an industrial facility the straws are said to still take 6 months to breakdown and our friends at @eorth.com done a study by putting the straw in the ground with home composting agents as you can see “We also placed a compostable straw in our “biodegradable experiment patch,” to watch it break down in a natural environment. This test is to replicate someone “accidentally” throwing it on the ground. At present, I can also report that this straw is not heading back to nature any time soon. It’s been there for over a year and is still holding up strong.”
C- Unfortunately no there is no button we can press that will allow the straw to internally combust. The straw to break down needs to be buried with a composting agent industrial strength or nature grown. But either way as the awesome team at eorth.com found out for us there is no way this guy is decomposing!
D- With all that in play, I do believe if it is safe to say that most states, restaurants, and cafes shouldn’t waste their money, time, and effort on biodegradable straws. After speaking to a few café owners’ It is my understanding that this type of plastic will be banned also when the ban comes into effect. These biodegradable straw companies know this and are charging a pretty little penny for these straws. I had one customer say they were charged double digits (cents) for them now. So if you are in the industry please be careful.
So there you have it team, maybe not the answers we are going after but a great insight on if you are looking to the biodegradable option as an alternative. I think the best answer for most hospitality businesses will be reusable straws. Offering them to customers as an upgrade option or using them in-house with our commercial-grade cleaner. These options will half your costs compared to single-use options, keep your customers happy (because who likes paper straws), and be the best option for the environment and our sustainable future.
REUSE NOT REPLAC#