Corn-Based Plastic Food Containers Replacing Petroleum-Based Plastics? They're Here!

Beginning Nov. 1, Cargill-owned NatureWorks, which makes natural plastics from corn, will supply environmentally-friendly containers for fresh strawberries, Brussels sprouts, cut fruit and herbs to Wal-Mart, the largest grocery chain in America, according to an Oct. 21 article in Minnesota’s St. Paul Pioneer Press. Replacing conventional packaging with NatureWorks PLA for just these four items alone will translate to more than 100 million containers per year for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., according to Matt Kistler, vice president of product development and private brands SAM’S Club (a division of a division of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.). “With this change to packaging made from corn, we will save the equivalent of 800,000 gallons of gasoline and reduce more than 11 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions from polluting our environment,” Kistler said.

Phase Two includes approximately eight million more packaging items with cut vegetable containers. Phase Three, just in time for the holidays, will be new NatureWorks PLA gift cards. The final phase scheduled for 2005 will include bread bags, donut boxes and select tomato packaging.

Wal-Mart and NatureWorks spent about a year extensively testing packages made from the plastic known as PLA, or polylactic acid. One thing that can’t be packaged in corn-based plastic containers—hamburger, because many people defrost it in the microwave, and the PLA will melt.

Made from Midwestern field corn, NatureWorks PLA is a bio-based plastic that can be used in a wide range of packaging applications from clear food containers to beverage bottles. The material provides the convenience, look, feel and performance of petroleum-based plastic packaging – while being made from a 100 percent annually renewable natural resource. Cargill, a biotech company based in Minnesota, is an international marketer, processor and distributor of agricultural, food, financial and industrial products and services. They provide customer solutions in supply chain management, food applications and health and nutrition. To read more about these sustainable efforts, go to http://www.cargill.com/news/news_releases/news4/051021_nwllcsams.htm#TopOfPage

Okay folks, admittedly this news isn’t specifically related to human nature, but it does raise a lot of questions, which is our nature to do (or at least mine). For one thing, how will we be able to distinguish between corn-based containers and traditional ones made from petroleum? Also, can they be recycled? How soluble are they? Will they be able to break down in landfills? Other than that, I’m gung-ho!