Biodegradable plastics were once the sweetheart of the packaging industry. With fully biological origin options made from renewable, plant-based sources like corn and other crops, they were pitted as the substitute for gas and oil-based plastics. But the production (and disposal) of biodegradable plastics isn’t as eco-friendly as it seems.
Biodegradable plastics don’t just rot away like apple cores and banana peels. And even if they did, we’d produce mountains of bacterial and mould sludge – and that hardly benefits the environment, either.
Almost always, biodegradable plastics are used in greenwashing campaigns; patching a problem in public consciousness, only to move it somewhere else. Out of sight, out of mind. But that’s not to say that traditional polythene is the slam-dunk winner, or the lesser of two evils, or the best option at all times. Yes, it can be recycled, but not indefinitely – and sorting is still a sore subject. It does, however, hold some unexpected advantages over so-called biodegradable plastic…
What are biodegradable plastics?
Biodegradable plastics are designed to break down more quickly than conventional plastics, often through exposure to specific conditions. They’re often made from sources other than ethylene gas, like plant-based processes, and are marketed as the eco-friendly alternative to traditional polythene. But the reality often doesn’t match the promise.
Biodegradable plastics – pros and cons
That’s because they require industrial composting facilities to properly degrade. Without these controlled conditions, they break down in the exact same way as traditional plastics – into microplastics, then into nanoplastics, which invariably end up in the water.
The process of industrial composting releases harmful emissions, takes energy to run, and offers little useful byproducts.
The truth is, biodegradable plastic probably does far more harm than good.
They are absolutely a marketing ploy, and a misleading one at that. Consumers may think biodegradable plastics can go into standard compost bins, leading to contamination of organic waste streams, or worse, that they’re completely harmless to the environment, and dispose of them like they would an apple core chucked into the bushes at a family picnic.
All the green, leafy decorations they usually sport are none too helpful, either.
In essence, many biodegradable plastics are more about optics than genuine environmental benefits. Now, if they are part of a circular collection, reuse, and end-of-life processing economy, that’s different. But we’ve never seen anything like this really deployed at a consumer level for biodegradable plastics.
And that brings us to conventional, traditional polythene; with all its bad press, bad image, and bad end of life management.
Traditional polythene – pros and cons
Traditional polythene is strong, flexible, and suitable for a wide range of applications – from packaging to construction. It can be recycled into new products when managed correctly, supporting a circular economy – and new, virgin material can be blended with recycled content to extend this further.
Compared to biodegradable alternatives, manufacturing even virgin polythene uses less water and agricultural resources, and this is considerably lower when recycled content is blended in, too.
But the dark side of polythene is impossible to ignore. Polythene can take hundreds of years to degrade in landfills and in nature, contributing to the global plastic pollution crisis. And it’s derived from non-renewable oil and natural gas processing, which are driving climate change.
So where do we go from here? What’s the best choice, if there is one?
Going from greenwashing to real solutions
Work is ongoing to find a way to turn polythene back into ethylene gas, and into other hydrocarbons, which would work to limit the reliance on oil and gas drilling. While this would solve fuel problems, it would so nothing to solve CO2 emissions – and if plastics became an affordable source of fuel, it could make things worse in the long run.
But despite their marketing, biodegradable plastics fail to live up to their eco-friendly reputation. As highlighted in our Packaging Design Trends for 2025 post, consumers and businesses are becoming increasingly aware of the need for real sustainability, not just flashy labels.
Biodegradable plastics are rarely the answer because they require industrial composting facilities unavailable in most areas. Their environmental benefits are often marginal compared to traditional polythene when accounting for their resource-intensive production. They could easily be mistaken as harmless, leading to poor disposal, and they distract from efforts to develop genuinely sustainable solutions.
The answer is still to reclaim, reuse, and recycle
We totally understand that this isn’t ideal. It’s not a satisfying conclusion, or an easy solution. But it can be a sustainable one. We think that reclaiming and reusing packaging through collection schemes can be highly effective on all environmental impact fronts – while also doing some great marketing.
Brands that can actively take the burden of recycling off the consumer will stand out as genuinely doing good, and will build the first truly circular economy for plastic waste.
If you want to design a recyclable, reusable polythene system for your packaging, then get in touch. We’re passionate about solving problems with polythene – and have been developing our design and manufacturing since 1968 to meet the goals of businesses on the forefront of change.
Recycled polythene specialists
Talk to the polythene experts at NPF Packaging, and design your own custom-blended recycled polythene packaging, with any level of recycled content. Enquire online to get a quote now, or call us on 01773 820415 to find out more about our manufacturing and design process.
