Oxo-Biodegradable Plastic – What should we know?

Oxo-Biodegradable! What is it and what does it mean? Let’s talk about some general environmental issues first. You must be aware of the fact that plastic products or plastic litters have been affecting almost all the countries around the world due to which some countries have completely banned the use of plastic altogether. The motto ‘reduce and recycle’ has always been there since.
What if there’s hope? What if plastic no longer affects the environment as it used to? What if we could still use plastic without causing damage to our natural surroundings? You must have come across the term biodegradable. As we go eco-friendly, our customers’ demand for sustainable products such as bioplastic, paper bags and paper takeaways keep on growing. This is where Oxo-biodegradable plastic bags come in.

Here, at Explast Ltd, we are pleased to announce our latest production of Oxo-biodegradable Plastic. Oxo-biodegradable plastic is known as a degradable plastic; in other words, this type of plastic is easily bio-degraded and does not take years to get destroyed. You must be wondering how is it possible since actual plastic takes over more than 100 years to degrade. These plastics are locally produced from LDPE, PP or HDPE in combination with well renowned UK produced Oxo-biodegradable additive d2W. It is the d2w that makes the plastic biodegradable. As such, “the d2w accelerates the natural process of oxidation until the product itself is no longer a plastic but a material which can be bio-assimilated (i.e used as a food source) by bacteria and fungi on land or sea (symphony environmental, 2019)”. The finished product is of high clarity and food-safe.

Is the Oxo-Biodegradable plastic same as regular plastic?

Oxo-biodegradable plastic is as durable as regular plastic but degrades much faster. Compared to regular plastic bags, when exposed to sunlight, heat, oxygen and microorganisms found in landfills, this causes the bag to degrade easily. In comparison with our traditional plastics, the final product, bags, or rolls will disintegrate within a period of 12-18 months. This process is completely different from the previous methods that were used to degrade plastic bags. However, the estimated days may vary for the oxo-biodegradable plastic to degrade since it depends on the amount of time it is exposed to the elements mentioned above such as sunlight, heat, and microorganisms. If the oxo-biodegradable bags are kept inside, it is very unlikely that it will receive any kind of exposure due to which it will last much longer and will remain usable for years when stored indoors. The oxo-biodegradable bags degradation process is almost the same as paper bags. We usually don’t find paper bags degrade indoors but when it becomes part of litters, it degrades quickly due to exposure and continues to fragment until it is small enough for microorganisms to ingest it.

What makes the Oxo-biodegradable plastic so different from regular plastic bags? There are various benefits of using Oxo-biodegradable plastic. The oxo-biodegradable plastic is the same in terms of quality, flexibility, optical properties, aesthetics, texture and strength when compared to regular plastic bags but it will last longer if kept indoors and will degrade quickly when it becomes litter. This type of plastic is recyclable compared to regular plastic bags.

Should you be interested in our new Oxo-Biodegradable plastic bag which is in line with our “Eco-Conscious Packaging” initiatives, please do not hesitate to contact us for free samples or get a quotation.

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