Oxo-biodegradable T-Shirt Bags

Oxo-Biodegradable T-Shirt bags of the same general type used by Tesco and Carrefours.  (We have no connection with either company.)  We also source biodegradable and oxo-biodegradable disposable plastic products-disposable cutlery, garbage bags, hot cup lids, straws, gelato spoons, all in bulk packaging for institutional use.  We do not use PLA or other bioplastic.

T-shirt bag details (dimensions are in inches-one inch = 25.4 mm.)  .55mil HDPE (one pound = .45 kilogram)
10 x 5 x 18 .55mil white
12 x 8 x 20 .55mil white
12 x 8 x 23 .55mil white

Packing for the bags are:
Small 2000pc. 16lb.
Large 1000pc. 12lb.

All bags are generic (custom printing can be quoted) as shown. The bags are 100% recyclable or biodegradable, using P Life additive. These high-density bags are as strong as conventional plastic bags, comply with European and domestic testing standards (USA: ASTM D6954-04 / Japan: K:6953:2000)  For custom prints (up to 5 colors) please call.   Pricing is similar to conventional HDPE bags.Tim Dunn
BioGreen Products Co.

As with all of our products, one 40' container is our minimum order.

Introduction to Biodegradable Plastics:

The Evolution of Biodegradable Plastic

Biodegradable plastic is plastic that biodegrades into humus when disposed of, due to the action of the micro-organisms that turn dead plant life into humus, the organic part of soil. The result is a rich and fertile soil.

There have been three generations of biodegradable plastic. The first was starch based plastic, PLA, almost always made out of corn. The second generation was oxo-biodegradable conventional plastic, and the third, the current generation, is biodegradable conventional plastic.

PLA, or corn-based plastic

PLA, or corn-based plastic, was the first generation of biodegradable plastic. It is billed as 'sustainable,' as it is based on food sources, primarily corn. However, if all of the disposable plastic products in the world were made out of corn, 150,000,000 tons of corn would be used to make plastic. Prices for corn would rise dramatically, and third world hunger would increase even more dramatically. There are currently 850,000,000 hungry people in the third world. If we imagine that condition worsening greatly, the result could only be a humanitarian catastrophe of appalling proportions. That is the real ramification of 'sustainability' in today's world.

Furthermore, PLA isn't a very good plastic. It imparts an off taste to water when used for water bottles, it melts when used as soup spoons, it's weak, and therefore items made of it are heavy, it has a short shelf life, and it often starts to decay before use, while still on the shelf. What's more, almost no recyclers accept it for recycling. In fact, recyclers dislike PLA and are trying to ban it, because it gets confused with more conventional plastics, and ruins their recycled plastic batches.  Even commercial composters are not entirely enthusiastic about PLA, because it is acidic, and too much of it in a compost batch works against the composting process.  90% of commercial composters surveyed said they would not accept PLA bottles, and PLA cannot be composed in home composting systems.

Oxo-Biodegradable Plastic, the Second Generation of Biodegradable Plastic

The second generation plastic oxo-biodegradable plastic was very different than the the previous generation of biodegradable plastic called PLA, starch-based plastic, or 'spudware. Oxo-biodegradable plastic had many advantages over PLA-It was invulnerable to water, one might adjust it to the desired biodegradation rate, some products could contain recycled content, it could be recycled, it didn't diminish the grain supply, it was stronger, less expensive, and was made from an otherwise useless industrial byproduct, naphtha.

This second-generation biodegradable plastic is little known in the US, but is is well established and widely used in Europe. Tesco and Carrefours, the largest grocery chains in the world, and in France, respectively, package their customers' groceries in oxo-biodegradable 't-shirt' bags. In fact, the largest bakers in Mexico and South Africa package bread in oxo-biodegradable bags, and oxo-biodegradable plastic is becoming common in India and China. The US is so far behind the curve on this, that it is a little embarrassing.

Oxo-biodegradable plastic doesn't biodegrade when deeply buried in landfills, because it requires an initial phase of degeneration which required certain environmental factors-oxygen and one of the following three circumstances-heat, UV light, or mechanical stress-and because the subsequent biodegredation part of the degredation only works in oxygenated environments. These circumstances don't exist when deeply buried in landfills, so oxo-biodegradable plastics don't have any benefit for products deeply buried in landfills.

The Third Generation of Biodegradable Conventional Plastics,
which are used in many of our products, including preforms.

There is now a third generation biodegradable product which is the standard plastic we use daily, naptha based plastic, with an additive that will cause it to biodegrade without the need of heat, UV light, mechanical stress, or oxygen. This third-generation plastic is called biodegradable plastic, and it biodegrades when placed into the ground due to the action of micro-organisms naturally occurring in soil. We are now using the third generation additives in all of our products. It has all of the benefits of oxo-biodegradable plastics-it is recyclable, is invulnerable to water, one may adjust the desired rate of biodegeneration, some products can have recycled content, it doesn't diminish the grain supply, and it is stronger, less expensive, and made of an otherwise useless industrial byproduct.

Additionally, this new plastic will definitely biodegrade when buried in the ground in either aerobic or anaerobic environments, ie. in a land fill. Like PLA, this new plastic will produce small amounts of methane in a land fill if deeply buried, but not so quickly as PLA, and like PLA, it will produce small amounts of carbon dioxide as a result of the metabolism of micro-organisms if it decomposes in the presence of oxygen.

With this new generation of biodegradable plastic, bidegradation is delayed long enough that there is time to cap the landfills, so the methane is burned off or even used to generate electricity, as is being done in almost 500 US land fills currently. Like all of our products, this new plastic is recyclable and completely non-toxic to people, plants, and animals, and is made of ingredients approved by the FDA for food contact.