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BPI?Certification

The?Biodegradable?Products?Institute?(BPI)?is?a?not-for-profit?association?of?key?individuals?and?groups?from?government,?industry?and?academia.

Through?our?innovative?compostable?label?program,?we?educate?manufacturers,?legislators?and?consumers?about?the?importance?of?scientifically?based?standards?for?compostable?materials?which?biodegrade?in?large?composting?facilities.

We?also?promote?the?use?and?recovery?of?compostable?materials?through?municipal?composting.?And?we?provide?information?and?resources?such?as?how?to?find?a?composter.

Mission?Statement?

The?Biodegradable?Products?Institute?(BPI)?is?a?multi-stakeholder?association?of?key?individuals?and?groups?from?government,?industry?and?academia,?which?promotes?the?use,?and?recycling?of?biodegradable?polymeric?materials?(via?composting).?The?BPI?is?open?to?any?materials?and?products?that?demonstrate?that?they?meet?the?requirements?in?ASTM?D6400?or?D6868,?based?on?testing?in?a?BPI-approved?laboratory.

BPI?will?accomplish?this?goal?with?three?key?components:?

●Education

The?BPI?will?inform?consumers,?generators?and?municipal?and?industrial?composters?of?the?benefits?and?availability?of?biodegradable?and?compostable?materials?which?meet?the?specifications?outlined?below,?based?on?independent?testing?in?the?appropriate?labs.

●Adoption?of?Scientifically?Based?Standards

The?Compostable?Logo?can?be?awarded?to?any?product?which?meets?the?requirements?in?ASTM?D6400?or?D6868,?specifications?based?on?more?than?8?years?of?research?by?suppliers,?composters?and?academia.

●Alliances?with?Other?Organizations

The?BPI?will?continue?to?work?with?other?organizations?to?further?the?use?and?recovery?of?biodegradable?materials,?including?harmonization?of?standards?around?the?world.?

Frequently?Asked?Questions

★?Who?is?the?BPI?and?who?are?its?members?

The?BPI?is?short?for?Biodegradable?Products?Institute.?It?is?a?multi-stakeholder?association?of?key?individuals?and?groups?from?government,?industry?and?academia,?which?promotes?the?use,?and?recovery?of?biodegradable?polymeric?materials.?BPI?will?accomplish?this?goal?through?education,?adoption?of?scientifically?based?standards?and?cooperative?activities?with?other?organizations?in?the?US,?Canada,?Europe?and?Japan.

Its?members?include?leading?resin?suppliers?(such?as?BASF,?CerePlast,?Heritage?Plastics,?NatureWorks?LLC,?Novamont,?and?Telles,LLC);?compostable?product?manufacturers?and?distributors?(such?as?BioBag,?BioGroup?US,?BioSphere?Industries,?Glad,?Huhtamaki,?Fabri-Kal,?Farnell?Packaging,?Frito?Lay?&?Polargruppen?A/S);?governmental?officials?and?the?scientific?community?(Ramani?Narayan-Chairman?of?ASTM?Subcommittee?D20.96?on?Environmentally?Degradable?Plastics).?

★?Why?is?the?BPI?invo*ed?in?this?program?

Ever?since?the?introduction?of?"biodegradable?plastics"?fifteen?years?ago,?confusion?and?skepticism?about?claims?and?product?performance?has?prevailed.?This?situation?stems?largely?from?plastic?products?that?did?not?biodegrade?as?expected,?yet?were?able?to?make?claims?because?no?scientifically?based?test?methods?and?standards?existed.?

Now?that?has?changed.?Specifications?do?exist.?These?are?ASTM?D6400?for?films?and?ASTM?D6868?for?packaging?which?uses?biodegradable?coatings.

More?importantly,?technology?has?advanced?to?the?point?where?there?are?plastics?that?have?the?functionality?of?existing?products,?yet?will?biodegrade?completely?and?safely?when?composted,?leaving?no?residues.?

The?Compostable?Logo?is?designed?to?address?the?confusion?that?has?existed?by?building?credibility?and?recognition?for?products?that?meet?the?ASTM?standards?among?consumers,?composters,?regulators?and?others.?It?is?designed?to?be?easily?recognizable?and?able?to?be?placed?on?the?actual?product?as?well?as?packaging?materials?and?sales?literature.?

★?Why?is?the?USCC?invo*ed?in?this?program?

Non-degradable?plastics?cost?the?composting?industry?millions?of?dollars?every?year.?They?add?to?processing?costs.?They?increase?the?percentage?of?material?that?is?unsaleable?and?must?be?landfilled.?The?remaining?plastic?fragments?reduce?the?value?of?the?compost,?creating?lost?revenue?opportunities.
By?working?with?the?BPI,?the?USCC?is?able?to?capitalize?on?their?scientific?expertise?to?assure?that?products?do?in?fact?meet?ASTM?D6400?"Specifications?for?Compostable?Plastics"?or?ASTM?D6868?“Specification?for?Biodegradable?Plastic?Coatings?on?Paper?and?other?Compostable?Substrates”.?An?easy?to?identify?symbol?goes?a?long?way?to?minimize?the?confusion?that?has?existed?in?this?area?for?the?past?15?years.??

★?What?benefits?will?this?program?bring?to?the?composting?industry?

The?program?will?save?composters?money?by?helping?to?eliminate?the?costs?that?plastics?generate.?Also,?biodegradables?will?expand?the?feedstocks?that?composters?can?readily?handle.?For?example,?food?scraps?from?special?events?and?institutions?often?contain?disposable?plastic?cutlery?and?straws.?These?are?impossible?to?economically?separate.?By?replacing?ordinary?plastics?with?biodegradables,?now?the?entire?wastestream?can?be?composted,?rather?landfilled,?as?in?the?past.

★?How?do?you?know?that?the?products?will?compost?satisfactorily?

The?test?methods?and?specifications?found?in?ASTM?D6400?and?ASTM?D6868?mimic?what?takes?place?in?well-run?municipal?or?commercial?composting?facilities.?These?tests?were?developed?after?8?years?of?intensive?work?conducted?at?the?request?of?the?ASTM?(American?Society?for?Testing?and?Materials).?Participants?in?the?study?included?the?USCC,?resin?suppliers?and?the?scientific?community.?The?work?identified?3?key?criteria?for?materials?and?products?to?be?compostable:

·?They?must?biodegrade?at?a?rate?comparable?to?yard?trimmings,?food?scraps?and?other?compostable?materials,?such?as?kraft?paper?bags.

·?They?must?disintegrate,?so?that?no?large?plastic?fragments?remain?to?be?screened?out.

As?important,?products?which?meet?these?standards?have?been?used?in?a?variety?of?programs?for?a?number?of?years.?If?you?would?like?more?information,?contact?Ramani?Narayan,?Chairman?of?ASTM?Subcommittee?D20.96-Environmentally?Degradable?Plastics.?He?can?be?reached?via?email?Scientific?Chairman.?Dr.?Narayan?is?also?the?head?of?the?BPI’s?Scientific?Review?Committee,?which?reviews?product?data?to?ensure?that?it?meets?ASTM?D6400?or?D6868.?
★Have?any?of?these?products?been?composted?in?"working?facilities"?
??Yes,?many?of?these?products?have?been?in?use?for?a?few?years?and?composted?by
?USCC?members.?
?A?growing?list?of?communities,?including?San?Francisco,?CA?and?Portland?OR?rely?on?
?The?BPI?to?identify?products?that?work?will?compost?quickly?and?safely.
?For?example,?biodegradable?bin?liners?are?used?in?a?number?of?organics?collection?
?and?composting?programs?in?grocery?stores,?to?minimize?washing?and?keep?bins?
?cleaner.????????????????????????????
?Also,?biodegradable?foodservice?ware?is?in?use?today?in?colleges?and?cafeterias.?
★Are?these?products?designed?for?composting?at?home,?also??
??No,?the?Compostable?Logo?identifies?products?that?will?perform?satisfactorily?in?
well?managed?municipal?and?commercial?facilities-ones?that?meet?the?require-
ments?found?in?the?USCC’s?Field?Operator’s?Guide.?We?will?insist?that?producers?use
the?appropriate?language?in?conjunction?with?the?Logo?to?make?this?distinction?clear.????????????????????????????????????????????While?there?are?hundreds?of?thousands?(possibly?millions)?of?home?composters,?
their?piles?or?composting?units?typically?do?not?generate?the?temperatures?needed?to?assure?rapid?biodegradation?of?this?new?class?of?materials.?For?this?reason,?claims?are?limited?to?larger?facilities.
★What?tests?will?be?invo*ed?
??There?are?3?key?tests?invo*ed.?All?are?referenced?in?the?ASTM?D6400?and?D6868.?The???first?measures?the?ability?of?the?product?or?material?to?be?converted?to?carbon?dioxide?by?the?organisms?found?in?a?compost?pile?at?an?acceptable?rate.?The?second?test?measures?the?ability?of?the?materials?to?fragment,?so?that?products?do?not?clog?the?screening?equipment.?The?third?test?measures?the?ability?of?the?resulting?compost?to?support?plant?growth.
★What?products?will?be?available?and?when?
While?it?is?premature?to?discuss?specific?manufacturers?at?this?time,?interest?in?the?Logo?program?has?already?been?expressed?by?manufacturers?of?food?serviceware,?bags?and?bin?liners?and?raw?materials.?
Depending?on?the?prior?testing?that?has?been?completed,?the?review?process?should?take?30-?60?days.?Then?it?is?a?question?as?to?how?quickly?graphic?changes?can?be?implemented?by?individual?manufacturers.?It?is?reasonable?to?expect?products?on?the?market?carrying?the?Logo?by?the?end?of?the?year.
The?list?of?products?is?approved?by?the?BPI?is?growing?rapidly.?Click?on?the?links?below?for?a?list?of?certified?compostable?products.?
★Who?are?the?scientists?invo*ed?in?the?review?process?
??The?head?of?the?BPI’s?Scientific?Review?Committee,?Ramani?Narayan?Ph.D.?Dr.?Narayan???????is?known?around?the?world?for?his?expertise?in?this?area.?He?has?assembled?a?list?of?well?respected?independent?scientists?to?review?the?data?generated?by?the?approved?labs.?These?scientists?have?excellent?credentials,?often?have?published?on?topics?in?this?area?and?frequently?are?tenured?professors?of?chemical?engineering.?
The?Scientific?Review?Committee?members?are?available?upon?request.
★What?testing?labs?can?be?used?
??Here?is?a?list?of?BPI?approved?labs?around?the?world.?Their?work?is?recognized?by?DIN?Certco's?in?Europe?and?the?Biodegradable?Plastics?Society?in?Japan.?By?using?one?of?these?labs,?suppliers?need?to?conduct?one?set?of?tests?that?can?be?used?around?the?world.??