Reference Library
The future of plastics has arrived wearing six sustainability labels and asking us not to read the fine print. Cute. This library reads it.
Explore materials, production methods and recovery technologies through EKOPOPS’s evidence-led explainers. Start with a question, find the relevant guide, then follow its sources. Expect useful chemistry, explicit limitations and the occasional raised eyebrow.
Also on this page: Quick glossary · How to judge the evidence · Source desk
Start with the decision you need to make.
Choosing packaging? Read material behaviour, then check the exact finished product and its collection route. Comparing recovery processes? Begin with inputs, usable outputs and resource demand. Checking a spectacular headline? Use the evidence questions before the standing ovation.
Choosing packaging? Read material behaviour, then check the exact finished product and its collection route. Comparing recovery processes? Begin with inputs, usable outputs and resource demand. Checking a spectacular headline? Use the evidence questions before the standing ovation.
01 · Claims, composting & terminology
Decode the label before it starts making speeches.
- Bioplastics: the essential vocabularyBiobased, biodegradable, compostable and ocean-bound: what each term does—and does not—tell you.
- Biobased versus recycled contentSeparate feedstock origin, recovered material and mass-balance accounting. Check what the percentage actually measures.
- Environmental claims: twelve questions to askA practical interrogation of vague green language, finished-product evidence and certification claims.
- Industrial versus home compostingTest conditions, facility acceptance and why a certified cup still needs the right collection route.
- Compostability: standards, certification and productsSeparate a test standard from a product certificate, then check the whole item rather than just its base resin.
- Australia: compostable packaging and FOGOA geographically specific guide to NSW research and organics-bin guidance; do not export one collection rule everywhere.
- Recycling rates and wishcyclingRead statistics with their year and denominator attached, and follow local sorting rules.
- US plastics policy: an early-2025 snapshotHistorical context for procurement and regulatory announcements. This article is not a complete statement of current law.
02 · Polymer families & material behaviour
Choose a material for its job, not its publicist.
- PLA: polylactic acidAn introduction to performance, heat limits, grade selection and the difference between possible recovery and local collection.
- PLA grades, blends and experimental fillersFollow-on reading on engineered performance and a peanut-hull filament preprint. Preliminary research is labeled.
- PHA: polyhydroxyalkanoatesA family of microbial polyesters with formulation-dependent behaviour. Includes identified supplier claims and questions for buyers.
- PEF and mycelium: two distinct material routesA bottle-polyester discussion alongside protective packaging. Renewable feedstock is not a universal compostability credential.
- Supramolecular polymers and self-healingReversible assembly, repair and reprocessing are distinct from biological breakdown. Ask which property was measured.
03 · Grown materials, films & composites
The coating and binder belong in the story, darling.
- Mycelium protective packagingCushioning, moisture, coatings and the actual packaging job: a framework for assessing fungal materials.
- Mycelium composites and added resinsWhy a biological starting material does not settle the performance or disposal of the final composite.
- Seaweed materials versus algae-filled plasticsDistinguish seaweed-derived packaging from algae blended into conventional polymers; read manufacturer claims in context.
- SeaweedPack: a research-project case studyProject partners, aims and reported development work, separated from claims of commercial readiness.
- Orange-peel and chitosan filmsExperimental film research, with attention to formulation, moisture sensitivity and the limits of packaging claims.
- Starch, shells and sugarcane: comparing candidatesAn application-led selection framework in place of universal sustainability rankings.
- Hemp/PLA compositesA route into composite research and the limits of transferring a constituent’s properties to a finished item.
- Organic fillers in plasticAsk about the matrix, additives and complete formulation before making biodegradation or certification claims.
04 · Emerging production & project watch
A funded project is an opening act. A factory needs operating evidence.
- PHA and wood-fibre berry punnetsA University of Queensland trial case study. Trial scale and researcher-reported results are distinguished from deployment.
- Food waste to PHABinghamton research and the crucial difference between polymer recovery and feedstock-to-product conversion.
- GRECO: PLA research objectivesA research-programme overview. Goals for future materials are not demonstrated product performance.
- AgroRenew: agricultural-residue plansA company-announcement case study; planned facilities and claimed formulations require operational verification.
- Ultrasound-assisted bioplastics researchA funded programme’s research direction, without treating its proposed benefits as proven commercial results.
05 · Recycling, recovery & degradation research
Follow the useful output. Then ask for the energy bill.
- Enzymatic PET recyclingPolymer-specific depolymerisation, feedstock preparation, modeled economics and dated company project updates.
- Pyrolysis and chemical recycling: the Hoop caseIntermediate outputs, design capacity and the additional steps between recovered oil and a new polymer.
- Community recycling systemsCollection models and open resources, with limits on comparisons and practical processing-safety context.
- Precious Plastic and open-source recyclingA closer look at the community model and why material identification and fume control matter.
- E-waste plastics to 3D-printing filamentResearch on selected recovered plastic streams; not permission to process unsorted electronics.
- Plastic-to-hydrogen testingA feedstock-testing case study. Energy recovery, material recycling and modeled performance need separate accounting.
- Fungi and plastic-degradation experimentsPolymer-specific findings and test conditions. A laboratory result does not establish an ocean-cleanup solution.
06 · Microplastics & exposure evidence
Detection deserves investigation. It does not write the entire risk assessment.
- Microplastics and nanoplastics in saltMeasurement limits, differing size ranges and why detected particles do not establish a particular health outcome.
- Microplastics and antibiotic resistanceA bounded laboratory finding, with a clear distinction between experimental observations and human-health conclusions.
Quick glossary: six terms, six different questions
- Biobased
- Made wholly or partly from biological resources. Describes origin; it does not establish biodegradability or lower overall environmental impact.
- Biodegradable
- Capable of biological conversion under specified conditions. Ask where, over what period and how conversion was measured.
- Compostable
- A claim tied to performance under defined composting conditions. Industrial and home composting are different; check the certification scope and local acceptance.
- Recycled content
- Recovered material incorporated into a product. It does not, by itself, show that the next user can recycle that product.
- Disintegration
- Physical breakup into smaller pieces. This observation alone does not demonstrate complete biological conversion.
- Biobased carbon content
- The share of organic carbon derived from renewable biological sources. A carbon-based percentage is not automatically a percentage of total product mass.
How to judge the evidence
A result can be interesting and incomplete. These are the questions EKOPOPS uses to keep the claim the same size as its evidence.
| When the claim is… | Ask for… | Do not assume… |
|---|---|---|
| “It biodegrades.” | Full formulation, environment, time, method and measured conversion. | A photograph of fragments proves complete biodegradation. |
| “It is compostable.” | Certification for the relevant item and thickness, the intended composting environment and collector acceptance. | A resin certificate covers every coating, adhesive and finished package. |
| “It replaces conventional packaging.” | Performance for the actual use: barrier, temperature, strength, shelf life and relevant food-contact documentation. | A successful film sample establishes a viable finished package. |
| “It cuts emissions.” | The comparison, equivalent product function, boundaries, energy assumptions and end-of-life scenario. | Renewable feedstock or a lower reactor temperature settles the whole life cycle. |
| “The plant can process X tonnes.” | Whether X is design capacity or measured throughput; operating period, input composition, usable yield and rejects. | A launch announcement demonstrates sustained production. |
| “Particles were detected.” | Sampling controls, polymer identification, size range, measurement limits and exposure context. | Detection alone proves a particular health effect. |
Use two labels when assessing a story: what kind of source is it? and what stage was demonstrated? A peer-reviewed laboratory paper and a company’s commercial announcement answer different questions. A preprint has not completed peer review; a university news release summarizes work but does not replace its methods. A pilot or demonstration plant can test integration without establishing sustained commercial economics.
Our preferred reading order is the original study or official record, its methods and limitations, then the announcement. For commercial performance, seek operating evidence and independent corroboration. If those are missing, keep the claim labeled as reported, modeled or proposed.
The source desk
Direct routes into useful evidence. These resources have different roles; a certification body, regulator and manufacturer are not interchangeable authorities.
- European Commission: biobased, biodegradable and compostable plasticsOfficial policy background and distinctions between material categories. A framework is not a certificate for a product.
- BPI: compostability certificationCertification-body information on its testing and assessment schemes. Match the scheme and scope to the product.
- USDA BioPreferred: certification criteriaGovernment programme information on biobased-content measurement. This is not a compostability label.
- FTC: environmental claims and the Green GuidesUS marketing guidance for interpreting and qualifying claims. Other jurisdictions have different rules.
- FDA: microplastics and nanoplastics in foodsThe agency’s account of measurement and health-evidence gaps. Presence alone does not resolve risk.
- Haneef et al. (2017): materials from fungal myceliumPeer-reviewed experimental research on fabrication and physical properties; findings apply to the tested systems.
Found a better source—or a claim that needs to lose its crown?
Send the article link and supporting evidence through Contact & Corrections. Material factual corrections are identified in the affected article.
Send the article link and supporting evidence through Contact & Corrections. Material factual corrections are identified in the affected article.
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