When I was a kid, I used to make believe that Christmas was everyday. Going to the mall was especially joyfull since the majority of wares come pre-packaged. It didn’t take much imagination for me to believe I was in Santa’s factory surrounded by strangly wrapped Christmas presents. Now I’m grown up and I realize packaging is not a fun 1/4 second between me and a new toy, but a terrible waste that costs the Earth, especially when it comes to fast food containers and plastic bags.
Alternatives currently exist to plastic bags, but what about packaging? The company NatureWorks has developed a hard plastic made from corn thats suitable for many common packaging applications. Bio-plastics degrade by industrial processes and are ideally suited to large events where collection is assured. Perphaps future versions can be suitable for your backyard composter. The kid side of me is just hoping I can get my Christmas gifts in Organically grown, locally producted plastic packaging so I wont have to feel guilty when I grow up.