A growing number of countries worldwide are banning plastics which are not oxo-biodegradable, Symphony Environmental Technologies deputy chairman Michael Stephen warned delegates at an international conference in Zagreb last week.
Countries including Pakistan and the UAE banned all non-oxo-biodegradable disposable plastics imports this year.
Iran, Yemen, Morocco, Balkan states and some African countries are among other countries to have passed laws which state that consumer plastics must be oxo-biodegradable, with fines for those who break the regulations, and confiscation of their products, said Stephen.
Oxo-biodegradable was popular in rapidly developing countries which have a big plastic waste problem, Stephen told delegates.
Re-igniting debate
However, his remarks sparked outrage at trade association European Bioplastics, as they re-ignited an eight year row over what biodegradable means.
A spokeswoman for the Association, which represents 70 member countries across Europe, told FoodProductionDaily.com that oxo-biodegradable plastics were just conventional plastics with an additive in them to make them break down after a set period.
She commented: “The use of artificial additives is not really bio-degradation. Oxo-biodegradeable is presented as a novel solution; however, oxo-biodegradable plastic will never be compostable or bio-degradable in the way that we use the term.”
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Symphony told this site that the additives used in the production of oxo-bio plastic were harmless to the environment.
Solution or problem?
The oxo-bio technology was seen as solution to dropped litter in many countries, as, for example, an oxo-biodegradable crisp packet dropped in the street might break down after six months.
Using this technology defends the plastic industry and retailers from allegations that their products can lie or float around in the environment for decades; Stephen told the FESTA-CROPAK annual packaging conference for the Balkan region.
He added: “Compostable plastics cost up to 400% more than normal plastic, whereas oxo-bio plastic costs less than 5%.”
And oxo-bio does not generate methane, even in landfill, whereas bio-based plastics do, he said.
The spokeswoman for Symphony added that this type of plastic is most popular in the European counties of France, Spain and Portugal as well as Eastern Europe and overseas markets including UAE and Pakistan. It had not been widely adopted in the UK.
Symphony works with companies in the food industry including Lidl, McDonalds and Subway.