MeadWestvaco Corp., Richmond, Va., USA, announced this week that its MWare food service paperboard has been certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI). Cups, plates, and other disposable containers made from MWare PLA-coated and uncoated bleached paperboard can be commercially composted with food waste and can feature BPI's compostable label.
"Consumers are increasingly concerned about how their habits impact the planet, including their use of disposable cups and plates," said Dobbie Newman, director of Food Service Marketing, MWV. "Providing certified compostable solutions that can be diverted from the landfill waste stream and are made from renewable resources gives our customers additional options for meeting their food service packaging needs. While we recognize that commercial composting facilities for these products are limited, we view composting as an important end-of-life option for organic materials and believe that commercial composting capacity will continue to grow. This achievement is also an important element of enabling MWV to meet its own sustainability goals."
All MWare paperboard materials are made from Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) certified, sustainably sourced paperboard and can be made with up to 30% post consumer recycled fiber. MWare Balance coated cup stock is made with PLA (polylactic acid), a bio-based resin that offers the functional performance of non renewable coatings but is made with annually renewable resources.
Each MWare product underwent a battery of tests to receive the ASTM D6868 compostable certification, the international standard for compostable plastic-coated papers. Certification ensures that all MWare baseline bleached paperboard materials are compostable in professionally managed composting sites and can be adapted to future innovations in coatings.
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