Since its foundation in 1993, European Bioplastics (former IBAW) has been committed to the establishment of a legal and technical framework for supporting the introduction of bioplastics to the market. The association is the owner of the Seedling mark, which is protected by trademark law. This mark is widely acknowledged, and it creates confidence among consumers that a neutral and competent entity carefully inspected and evaluated test criteria. Thus, customers receive added value that they can take into consideration when making purchase decisions.
The certification scheme “Products made of industrially compostable materials” was created and is continuously refined in collaboration with DIN CERTCO and a dedicated committee of experts. It makes a distinction between the registration of materials, intermediates and additives and the certification of (end) products. It is continuously being further developed under the aegis of European Bioplastics in consensus with the stakeholders. The Certification Scheme has been owned by European Bioplastics since 2012.
The certification work is performed by both, DIN CERTCO (Germany) and TÜV AUSTRIA Belgium; (changed from Vinçotte in 2017). Registration/Certification clients can choose either of the certification bodies to work with to establish the conformity of their product(s) with the underlying standards. In the following, reference made to the Certification Body is a neutral expression for the respective certifier, chosen by a client.
Products made of compostable materials are given the right to bear the compostability mark upon fulfilling the requirements indicated under Section 4 according to the procedure described in this Certification Scheme. For materials, intermediates or additives, a notification of registration is issued if the requirements named under Section 4 are fulfilled.
In addition to the Certification Body’s general terms and conditions, this Certification Scheme provides a basis for organizations which supply products made of compostable materials to label their products with the compostability mark, the so-called “Seedling”. This proves that their products fulfill the requirements of EN 13432 as well as, if applicable, the additional/simultaneous requirements in EN 14995, ISO 18606, ISO 17088 and/or ASTM D 6400.