To achieve the certification, materials and additives are tested for heavy metals, complete biodegradation, disintegration under compost conditions and toxicity to plants.
Shropshire-based Ecosac has achieved this standard for their bags, using materials made from high-quality impurity-free maize.
The award comes at a time of increased interest in biodegradable bags, with a number of supermarkets launching bags claiming to be fully compostable. The recognition for Ecosac comes after the production of their first bags a year and a half ago.
“We have always produced our product to this standard,” said Frazer Walker, director of Ecosac. “But it's great that people can now buy our products with total confidence. Our bags biodegrade and compost in 35-45 days, with only a minimal amount of carbon dioxide and water left,” he added.
The Composting Association (CA) said before Christmas that they would promote the scheme in the UK and provide third party verification by testing all accredited products independently in its own laboratories.
Tony Breton of the CA said: “There are costs involved but we believe they will be worth it. There are a number of collection receptacles on the market but some of them don't degrade properly within the ground.”
The Composting Association will be carrying out regular spot checks on Ecosac to ensure that product continues to meet the standards.
Basildon
Meanwhile, Basildon district council has announced it is to issue starch-based collection sacks for residents, after the ones it had previously been using failed to meet criteria set by Pitsea, the composting facility which they use.
The new arrangement will see sacks issued to residents of each property that currently use the council's green waste kerbside collection service. They will receive 40 free sacks a year, with extra sacks being available at a cost of 1.25 for a roll of 10.
The new sacks are being produced by Norwegian company, Polar Grouppen, who will also be providing Brentwood and Castle Point with the sacks.
Basildon Councillor, Stephen Hillier, said that although the new sacks are more expensive, they had no choice but to swap if they wanted to continue using the current process at Pitsea. “The alternative would be for garden waste to go to landfill, which would have a serious impact on our recycling targets,” he explained.
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