Using biodegradable and compostable plastic products such as biowaste bags or fresh food packaging increases the end-of-life options. In addition to recovering energy and mechanical recycling, industrial composting (organic recycling) becomes an available end-of-life option.
Compostability is a clear benefit when plastic items are mixed with biowaste. Under these conditions, mechanical recycling is not feasible, neither for plastics nor biowaste. The use of compostable plastics makes the mixed waste suitable for organic recycling (industrial composting and anaerobic digestion), enabling the shift from recovery to recycling (a treatment option which ranks higher on the European waste hierarchy). This way, biowaste is diverted from other recycling streams or from landfill and facilitating separate collection – resulting in the creation of more valuable compost.
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