Thiruvananthapuram: Adieu plastic, welcome starch bags

Thiruvananthapuram: There is a kind of carry bag which looks so much like a plastic one, that people don’t believe the text on it: ‘I am not a plastic bag’. Its manufacturers insist it is not, that it is ‘compostable plastic’. “It is made of cornstarch, and 100% compostable,” says C Ramesh, proprietor, Green Factor. The product is ideal for storing or carrying such items as fish. His company has been trying to distribute it in the shops here, during the plastic ban.

It is now available at a major retail outlet in the city. Because of its close similarity with plastic, shops are hesitant to keep it. “They are afraid health inspectors might seize it during raids. There is a need for capacity building among decision makers, health inspectors and people,” he says. He says the term ‘plastic’ in its name is misleading. Compostable plastic is defined, in Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules 2016, as plastic that undergoes degradation by biological processes during composting, and does not leave a visible, distinguishable or toxic residue.

He claims that in four to six months, it will be turned into compost. “If you light it, it will burn like a leaf. Unlike plastic, it doesn't produce toxic fumes,” he says. CFTRI has conducted tests and has issued a test saying that it conforms to standards laid down in IS: 10146-2003 “for the intended use for packaging of aqueous and fatty foods like sweet and prasadam at room temperature”. Central Institute of Plastic Engineering and Technology (CIPET) has tested it and certified that it is biodegradable and is not toxic.

Central Pollution Control Board and State Pollution Control Board have given permission to market and sell the products, as per IS/ISO 17088. However, Suchitwa Mission is not keen on promoting it. “We don’t encourage it as we are trying to create a plastic carry bag free society. Moreover, since it resembles plastic, we won’t be able to differentiate between biodegradable plastic and plastic. Fake versions of it could go in circulation,” says K. Vasuki, executive director, Suchitwa Mission.