An environmentally friendly alternative to polyethylene “T-shirts” appeared in Belarus – bags made of corn. In the near future, the first such packages will be delivered to large retail chains, BelTA learned from the manufacturing company. Industrial production of corn bags launched in Logoisk. Its uniqueness is that such packaging is completely decomposed after a year, without polluting nature. And under certain conditions, fertilizer can be made from it (used in industrial composting).
At the heart of biopackets is starch derived from corn leaves. They comply with the European standard EN13432: at least 90% of the material is decomposed into CO2, water and biomass. Such packages can be distinguished by the special OK compost logo, a license for printing of which is issued only by independent European laboratories: TUV (Austria) and Vincotte (Belgium).
And there is already one conclusion from the laboratory of the Belarusian Technological University that the new package does not contain plastic. This is a fundamental difference between corn “T-shirts” and the so-called biodegradable bags, which can sometimes be seen at the store’s cash desks. In fact, these are oxalizable polyethylene bags. They contain special oxo-additives, which only accelerate the disintegration of plastic into small particles, and those remain in the soil for years. The capacities and equipment of the new production allow to produce about 30 million packages, which is enough to meet the needs of Belarusian customers in packaging. The cost of such a “T-shirt” will be higher than polyethylene, but cheaper than paper. The manufacturer is confident that this will increase the ranks of those who prefer to take care of nature.
In addition to the “corn” line, the plant also updated the equipment of the recycling plant. And this summer, it is planned to launch another eco-project. Its essence is to motivate Belarusians to hand over their old packages and receive new ones from them. So you can avoid the appearance of additional plastic on the ground.