Why cant we just use a bunch of different sized reusable containers that you return to the store?
Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
51–60 of 141 posts
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#52Plastic packaging protects food from moisture and dirt. If you make the packaging out of a water-soluble material and then eat it, surely that's almost completely useless? Like, now you need some kind of additional outer wrapper to stop your edible packaging from getting contaminated. The article mentions muffin liners as an alternative use case, but those are usually made of thin paper and are already compostable.
Yeah, this specific bio-material probably doesn't make sense for moisture and dirt.
However, the bio-plastics made from shellfish leftovers (think: crab, lobster, shrimp) would be appropriate for this.
The problem with petroleum based products (Styrofoam, plastics) is that they are crazy cheap due to our oil based economy. At some point the economics of that industry will change, and with it the prevailing winds on using plastics as building materials.
I would welcome more products being made as sturdy as they used to be. Take for example, pooper scoopers. It's actually quite difficult to buy a scissor-style one made of any kind of metal (there's one which is 80ish USD and made of steel - sort of a vanity product). They're all plastic. They all break, some sooner than others. The one I picked up from my parents' house recently was used from about 1990 to 2003 (and left outdoors since), and performs better than any of the plastic ones we used. It's wood and aluminum, and probably was no more expensive than the plastic ones on offer today. We broke a 25 dollar scooper within a month, and the scooper we inherited will likely outlive yet another dog.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
My protein bars need individual wrap. I am not putting them 'naked' inside of my hiking backpack. Not to mention how nasty the last one is when it takes you 2 months to finish a box... All of them exposed to air? Thanks but no thanks.
That’s what tin boxes are for. They keep their content fresh and protect it.
So a container for your wrapped product? That gets full of random lint and dust?
Meh.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#54Plastic packaging protects food from moisture and dirt. If you make the packaging out of a water-soluble material and then eat it, surely that's almost completely useless? Like, now you need some kind of additional outer wrapper to stop your edible packaging from getting contaminated. The article mentions muffin liners as an alternative use case, but those are usually made of thin paper and are already compostable.
Yeah, this specific bio-material probably doesn't make sense for moisture and dirt. However, the bio-plastics made from shellfish leftovers (think: crab, lobster, shrimp) would be appropriate for this. The problem with petroleum based products (Styrofoam, plastics) is that they are crazy cheap due to our oil based economy. At some point the economics of that industry will change, and with it the prevailing winds on u…
> At some point the economics of that industry will change, and with it the prevailing winds on using plastics as building materials.
KSA can pump oil at current rates for 40 years at $20 per barrel.
That'll definitely be enough for global plastic consumption.
Economics itself isn't going to phase out plastics in my lifetime.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#55Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#56Plastic packaging protects food from moisture and dirt. If you make the packaging out of a water-soluble material and then eat it, surely that's almost completely useless? Like, now you need some kind of additional outer wrapper to stop your edible packaging from getting contaminated. The article mentions muffin liners as an alternative use case, but those are usually made of thin paper and are already compostable.
Yeah, this specific bio-material probably doesn't make sense for moisture and dirt. However, the bio-plastics made from shellfish leftovers (think: crab, lobster, shrimp) would be appropriate for this. The problem with petroleum based products (Styrofoam, plastics) is that they are crazy cheap due to our oil based economy. At some point the economics of that industry will change, and with it the prevailing winds on u…
From my understanding the shellfish bioplastic will trigger allergies so its not suitable for food wraps but can be okay things like straws
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#57There is a great company here in Australia (https://greatwrap.com.au) already doing this at decent scale with potato waste. Their manufacturing costs are on par with traditional plastic wrap.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, this specific bio-material probably doesn't make sense for moisture and dirt. However, the bio-plastics made from shellfish leftovers (think: crab, lobster, shrimp) would be appropriate for this. The problem with petroleum based products (Styrofoam, plastics) is that they are crazy cheap due to our oil based economy. At some point the economics of that industry will change, and with it the prevailing winds on u…
From my understanding the shellfish bioplastic will trigger allergies so its not suitable for food wraps but can be okay things like straws
Huh. I don't see how those two things can both be true but OK.
Anyways. I am sure the boffins are working on the shellfish allergy angle.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#59Plastic packaging protects food from moisture and dirt. If you make the packaging out of a water-soluble material and then eat it, surely that's almost completely useless? Like, now you need some kind of additional outer wrapper to stop your edible packaging from getting contaminated. The article mentions muffin liners as an alternative use case, but those are usually made of thin paper and are already compostable.
Muffin liners actually make more sense to me. It’s often hard to get a muffin liner off of the muffin without losing a lot of muffin. An edible liner that has a good texture might have some actual value.
There are already edible materials that would work like waffle (as in ice cream cones) or rice paper. You could even call it something different to advertise it's green properties, like wuffin or ruffin.
Re: Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plastic Packaging Someday?
#60The problem with everything is cost. If the cost was there to do so we would have. Plastics are too cheap and mainstream to use anything else. America could change and go this way but the rest of the world would have to do so to actually make a massive impact. This is where the cheap alternative packaging never reaches anyway because it isn't cheap enough, check how much plastics are used in Asia and you'll understand why this isn't long term feasible.