Today I went to my local coffee shop, Library Coffee to get an iced Chai Tea Latte. It was 94 degrees out and the air was thick so I needed some relief. This deliciously cold and semi sweet concoction quenches the thirst like no other drink can (for me at least). It helped me pass the time at the park with the boys as well as hold back some of the sweat that was beginning to collect at the bottom of my neck and dampen my hair which would then turn it curly. But I digress... I learned today that the plastic cup holding my precious chai tea is made from corn and if held under hot water for a couple of minutes will disintegrate into a natural byproduct that will eventually degrade back into carbon. I thought it sounded pretty cool since most plastics found in packaging and server ware are made from fossil fuels (petroleum) that can not be replaced. These plastics also do not return to a degraded state, ever. In fact, far out in the Pacific Ocean there is a huge area that is growing at an alarming rate containing a gigantic tangle of our plastic garbage. This plastic jungle out in the middle of the ocean is killing aquatic life and poisoning the water. Bet you didn't know the extent to which our planet is being destroyed. But if we don't have landfills to dump our plastics in then where do you think they will wind up? I guess its too expensive to shoot it all into space. Just a thought.
This plastic cup that I drank my cold tea from is made of corn. The same raw material that finds its way into our food chain in such a plethera of ways. Its becoming more common and there are now a handful of packaging companies using corn as their main input. So now with plastics made from corn, we may be able to finally reduce some of that garbage that's made from finite resources and once discarded, never really goes away. Sounds great but I have 2 concerns: First being that the demand for these types of plastics is still small. Big CPG companies really need pressure from their consumers to become more environmentally conscious. Boycotting products made from non biodegradable packaging is a start and in numbers will make an impact. Government legislation can help with this as well. However, I think the market will be directing the switch to bio degradable plastics because the cost of petroleum is only going to increase as the fossil fuel becomes more scarce. The corn inputs for plastic are actually competitively priced and as more players get into the business the prices will fall even further. But my second concern has more to do with the corn than anything else. Once we move to using corn as the primary raw material for making plastic will the devastating effects on our environment continue but now only indirectly?
Here is what I mean. Corn is grown using fossil fuels. I speak about this in earlier posts but I will mention it again. America's farmers are abandoning what once was a profitable business and turning to monoculture to survive. They devote almost all their land to growing one crop - CORN. These farmers are barely making ends meet because government subsidies are just enough to cover the costs of growing the stuff but they are stuck. The corn being planted is a GMO (genetically modified) and is not edible. It needs to be processed and then goes into animal feed, processing plants to make sweeteners, thickeners and emulsifiers in processed foods, ethanol for cars and now as a raw material for plastic. This corn thing is really versatile. I wonder what else we can use it for - maybe medicine? Who knows? But I digress once again... The farmer, trying to maximize his corn crop and get the highest yield, does not use the sun to grow his corn. He uses fertilizer which is made of fossil fuel and runs off the land into our rivers, lakes and streams polluting our aquatic life. The land that the corn is grown on is being stripped of all its fertility and one day will not be able support life at all. This is the cycle we are creating. It seems to me that we are moving from one evil to another with the same original dependency on our finite resources. Both ways of making plastic are not sustainable to me. So yeah, it sounds so "green" to use plastic that will melt down into corn and go back into the ground and bio degrade. But at what cost? We are doing the same amount of damage to our environment as the non bio degradable plastic has done. Who do you think is behind the movement to use corn as a raw material for plastic - take one guess - CARGILL. Yes that is right, Cargill owns a company called NatureWorks that is leading the way forward in the corn based plastics movement. They are the creators of PLA a corn based polymer. So I do believe that if Cargill can find a way to make medicine out of corn they will do it. I do not trust Cargill and find that everthing they own or touch has a hand in destroying our planet in some way.
I think the moral of this story is to reuse, reuse, reuse. Take your canvas bags to the store. Use glass to drink out of. Ask for recycled paper cups for your coffee, limit your purchases of products that use an excessive amount of plastic packaging and buy wooden toys for your kids. We can not get out of this destructive cycle until we make the active decision to opt out. Try it for a day and see if you can avoid using or buying plastic. I bet it will be hard but maybe reducing your consumption is the first step.
This plastic cup that I drank my cold tea from is made of corn. The same raw material that finds its way into our food chain in such a plethera of ways. Its becoming more common and there are now a handful of packaging companies using corn as their main input. So now with plastics made from corn, we may be able to finally reduce some of that garbage that's made from finite resources and once discarded, never really goes away. Sounds great but I have 2 concerns: First being that the demand for these types of plastics is still small. Big CPG companies really need pressure from their consumers to become more environmentally conscious. Boycotting products made from non biodegradable packaging is a start and in numbers will make an impact. Government legislation can help with this as well. However, I think the market will be directing the switch to bio degradable plastics because the cost of petroleum is only going to increase as the fossil fuel becomes more scarce. The corn inputs for plastic are actually competitively priced and as more players get into the business the prices will fall even further. But my second concern has more to do with the corn than anything else. Once we move to using corn as the primary raw material for making plastic will the devastating effects on our environment continue but now only indirectly?
Here is what I mean. Corn is grown using fossil fuels. I speak about this in earlier posts but I will mention it again. America's farmers are abandoning what once was a profitable business and turning to monoculture to survive. They devote almost all their land to growing one crop - CORN. These farmers are barely making ends meet because government subsidies are just enough to cover the costs of growing the stuff but they are stuck. The corn being planted is a GMO (genetically modified) and is not edible. It needs to be processed and then goes into animal feed, processing plants to make sweeteners, thickeners and emulsifiers in processed foods, ethanol for cars and now as a raw material for plastic. This corn thing is really versatile. I wonder what else we can use it for - maybe medicine? Who knows? But I digress once again... The farmer, trying to maximize his corn crop and get the highest yield, does not use the sun to grow his corn. He uses fertilizer which is made of fossil fuel and runs off the land into our rivers, lakes and streams polluting our aquatic life. The land that the corn is grown on is being stripped of all its fertility and one day will not be able support life at all. This is the cycle we are creating. It seems to me that we are moving from one evil to another with the same original dependency on our finite resources. Both ways of making plastic are not sustainable to me. So yeah, it sounds so "green" to use plastic that will melt down into corn and go back into the ground and bio degrade. But at what cost? We are doing the same amount of damage to our environment as the non bio degradable plastic has done. Who do you think is behind the movement to use corn as a raw material for plastic - take one guess - CARGILL. Yes that is right, Cargill owns a company called NatureWorks that is leading the way forward in the corn based plastics movement. They are the creators of PLA a corn based polymer. So I do believe that if Cargill can find a way to make medicine out of corn they will do it. I do not trust Cargill and find that everthing they own or touch has a hand in destroying our planet in some way.
I think the moral of this story is to reuse, reuse, reuse. Take your canvas bags to the store. Use glass to drink out of. Ask for recycled paper cups for your coffee, limit your purchases of products that use an excessive amount of plastic packaging and buy wooden toys for your kids. We can not get out of this destructive cycle until we make the active decision to opt out. Try it for a day and see if you can avoid using or buying plastic. I bet it will be hard but maybe reducing your consumption is the first step.
I enjoyed reading your comments. I just wanted to mention that traditional plastics, like the kind that make you feel guilty for using, are changing. We knew that PET plastic bottles were a growing problem and that’s why we got involved. We developed the ENSO plastic bottle which is made of traditional PET plastic with EcoPure. It turns out that when traditional PET is manufactured the organic materials that microbes recognize as food have been removed. Our bottles add EcoPure which attract microbial activity and allow microbes to consume the plastic…leaving behind biogases and humus. Our bottles biodegrade within 1-5 years in a landfill environment.
ReplyDeleteI feel that bioplastics (PLA) have a place as a niche plastic but I shudder to think of the ramifications if PLA were ever to be produced in the quantities of current plastic. Most of the corn used for plastic or ethanol for that matter isn’t fit for human consumption…what a waste of valuable farm land that should be use to produce food crops. Bioplastics are likely to promote monocropping, which will increase the use of chemical fertilizers, wipe out biodiversity, pollute water, pollute soil and cause higher prices for crops impacting food supplies and prices.
We need something better than using our food supplies for fuel and plastic.
Journalist George Monbiot argues, “Those who worry about the scale and intensity of today’s agriculture should consider what farming will look like when it is run by the oil industry.”
I agree with your point that we need to use, reuse, reuse, reuse and recycle. The problem with recycling is that here in the U.S recycling rates are horrible and most items we toss aren’t even considered to be recyclable. There are more than 150 billion plastic containers produced and less than 30 percent is recycled. California boasts a 60 percent recycle rate but they are using “fuzzy” math. They are using 60% but this number but it is misleading as they only count the plastic containers that require a deposit. Most of the plastic used in California doesn’t require a deposit and most of it is ending up in a landfill. Wouldn’t it be better if all plastic was biodegradable?
There isn’t a simple answer and our bottle isn’t the final answer but we feel that the ENSO biodegradable plastic bottle is a step in the right direction.
Max
http://www.ensobottles.com
“Bottles for a healthier earth”
Thanks for your comment Max. I completely agree with your POV. Does the ENSO plastic require fossil fuel to produce? If not, it truly is a step in the right direction. Its too bad that recycling isn't being used to its potential. That is why I try to use products that are more permanent such as canvas bags for groceries and glass bottles for drinking. Its kind of traditional but I believe that these traditions have served mankind for centuries without doing irrepairable damage to our planet. We as a culture of consumption and convenience have directed the market to provide products that are disposable and its been a terrible mistake. We need to go back to our humble beginings or find a material that doesn't destroy our land/animals or use fossil fuels to produce. Since no material really exists right now, I will be continuing to use my canvas and glass. I will also check out that ENSO website. Thanks again for your comments I love reading them. Please continue to visit the BLOG!
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