Biodegradable packaging

Buy best value eco packaging, including biodegradable bags and compost bags, to do your bit for the environment.

Biodegradable packaging is...

• Better for the environment than traditional plastic or polythene packaging
• A term that covers a range of biodegradable products, including carrier bags, mailing bags, clear bags, bin liners, refuse sacks, wrapping, compost bags, food waste bags, dog poo bags, garment covers, loose fill and much more
• Made from natural materials like starch or paper
• Broken down over time by natural microorganisms, like fungi or bacteria, when placed in prolonged contact with soil, such as when placed in landfill
• Converted into carbon dioxide, water and biomass over a period of time, which varies depending on the product in question
• Also known as eco-friendly packaging, eco-packaging or green packaging
• Every bit as useful as traditional polythene packaging - it really gets the job done and at less cost to the environment
• Becoming more popular over time and therefore more competitively priced, in comparison to traditional polythene packaging

Results from recent searches on mailing bags

White mail bags are chosen when mail or small consignments need a clean, tough outer layer that stands up to sorting, handling, and repeated movement through the chain. A white stop gives a tidy, professional see, nevertheless the proper value lies in the strength of the film and the reliability of the peel-and-seal closure. If the gauge is also light, bags split at the corners or scuff badly in transit; if the seal is poor, contents can shift or escape. For dispatch teams, that means faster packing with less rework and less damaged returns. A well-manufactured mail bag assists retain secondary packing simple and the consignment secure from shelf to delivery.

Details about   1000 Poly Mailer Packing Satchel Courier Mail Bags Postage 350 N

Courier mail bags are chosen when lightweight protection and fast dispatch matter above fat outer packing. A superb polythene suppliers satchel retains items dry, reduces package weight and takes up far less space in storage than cartons, which assists select-face efficiency when orders are moving fast. The gauge requirements to match the contents, though, because a thin bag can split on a sharp edge or burst at the heat seal if it is overloaded. Size also affects handling, since a bag that is also big can let the contents shift around and arrive looking untidy. The optimal result comes from matching film strength and pouch size to the job, not simply utilising the cheapest option.

Big mail bags should be treated as a handling and waste problem, not only a bit of litter on the floor. Once a big sack has served its purpose, it can still stay in circulation for a while if it is kept clean, folded flat and collected with other used sacks for reuse or recycling. The trouble beginnings when operatours treat it as disposable on first use, because that normally means additional mess, more housekeeping and a poorer impression in any shared space. In a warehouse, gym or dispatch area, loose bags can also become trip hazards and block tidy returns to stock control. Better habits come from simple routines: transparent assortment points, visible reuse bins and staff who see value in the pack after the contents have gone. That is how a bag stops being waste the moment it is emptied.

Details about   5 JL000 White JIFFY Genuine Bubble Padded Mail Bags 90 (3.5" x 5.75")

For low-value, small-format despatches, a white bubble-lined padded mail bag of this type sits somewhere between outer wrap and transit protection; the practical merit lies in the method the air-cell structure absorbs knocks without adding much tare weight, which is no small matter when consignment volumes are being lifted, sorted and rehandled across multiple select-faces. A 90 x 145 mm profile lends itself to micron-specific presentation of contents, while the polythene suppliers laminate assists retain surface integrity against scuffing and incidental moisture; in stock-room terms, that translates into tidy handling, decent pallet stability and better volumetric efficiency than loose secondary bagging would enable. There is also a circular-economy angle, albeit a modest one: where mono-material buildings are specified and gauge control is kept consistent, recovery and reprocessing become less awkward, and the energy amortised per unit of protection is kept acceptably low.

Bubble mail bags in CD size sit at the practical stop of the packing spectrum: a lightweight polythene suppliers outer attached with an air-cell liner that protects media-format consignments from scuffing, edge crush and the sort of low-level handling damage that accumulates across a warehouse dash. The material specification matters above the sales copy recommends gauge consistency, seam integrity and the resilience of the bubble layer all affect whether a package grasps its shape through select-face movement, secondary bagging and courier transport. In volumetric terms they are tidy packers; tare weight remains modest, pallet stability is straightforward, and the mono-material polythene suppliers building lends itself more readily to downstream sorting than mixed-material alternatives, which is no small point where feedstock quality and recyclability are being assessed against tighter stockroom and waste-stream routines.

In warehouse and dispatch terms, bag manufacturers are rarely treated as a simple consumable; they are part of the control system around despatch accuracy, volumetric efficiency and stock movement. The better gradestypically built on tightly specified polythene suppliers with consistent gauge across the webreduce split risk at the select-face, sit neatly on the packing bench, and close cleanly without the old film memory that can slow secondary bagging. A mono-material specification also tends to simplify stop-of-life handling; it assists a more straightforward recycling stream, while the lighter tare weight, compared with outer cartons or mixed-material wraps, assists retain pallet stability and freight density in order. Procurement ends up sounding mundane, nevertheless in practice it is about keeping the line moving with less failures and less waste.

shipping suppliersHot sale New style superior Co-extruded custom black poly bubble mailers plastic mail bags padded envelopes

In the parcels trade, plastic mail bags have settled into a rather technical niche: not merely a low-cost outer, nevertheless a tuned packaging format balancing puncture resistance, tare weight and line-side handling. The better-performing variants tend to rely on co-extruded polythene suppliers structures, where differing polymer layers are assigned separate jobs one carrying impact strength and seal integrity, another improving stiffness or opacity so the finished mailer can withstand conveyour abrasion, sortation drops and the awkward edge profiles of boxed or strange stock. Add a bubble-lined internal cushion and the envelope beginnings to displace corrugated secondary bagging for a fair share of e-commerce consignments; volumetric efficiency improves, pallet density normally follows, and the reduction in dead weight eases freight calculations without sacrificing select-face practicality. The engineering irritants are well known on the warehouse floor: static build on high-speed packing benches, inconsistent gauge leading to weak seals, and poor melt-flow consistency that leaves the bag either also limp for machine filling or also boardy for clean closure. Competent manufacture mitigates this with tighter micron-specific gauging, controlled seal windows and a surface stop that resists scuffing while still taking print cleanly. The circular-economy argument, meanwhile, is less straightforward than sales copy tends to imply, nevertheless mono-material polythene suppliers buildings at least simplify recyclability where assortment streams exist, and the amortised energy per packed unit can compare favourably with bulkier paper-based formats when consignment density and transit protection are assessed honestly.

When a response volume tips from normal mail-room handling into six big mail bags, the conversation stops to be about mere capacity and turns to packaging mechanics. In practice, these sacks are specified around load-bearing behaviour as much as raw volume: a high-density polythene suppliers building with controlled gauge across the panel reduces split risk at the bottom seam, while still keeping tare weight low enough that the bag itself does not become a nuisance in manual sortation. That matters on the warehouse floor, where awkward, low-density consignments can wreck pallet stability and slow select-face efficiency long before anyone notices a throughput problem. The better formats also address a quieter irritationsurface drag and static select-upwhich can make secondary bagging inconsistent when lightweight paper stock clings at the mouth of the sack; anti-static treatment and sensible melt-flow consistency in the film assist the bag open, occupy and marshal cleanly. There is, also, the circular economy question, which has become less theoretical than plenty suppose: mono-material polythene suppliers sacks are far easier to recover than mixed-laminate alternatives, and when the bag survives repeated handling cycles the amortised energy per consignment drops in a method operations managers can in reality measure, not merely advertise.

The Urban Courier Bag M

A well-specified courier bag is less about carrying capacity in the abstract and more about what happens between despatch bench and last hand-off: the material or film has to absorb repeated flexing, abrasion at seam lines and the intermittent point-loading that comes from poorly distributed contents, all without adding needless tare weight to the consignment. In practice that pushes the engineering towards tightly controlled polymer buildingoften a high-density polythene suppliers structure or similarly robust laminated substratewhere gauge uniformity and melt-flow consistency determine whether the bag grasps its shape below strain or simply creeps at the corners after secondary bagging. The better examples are designed with volumetric efficiency in mind; a compact profile improves pallet stability in trunk movements, reduces dead space in cages and maintains select-face efficiency when stock is being marshalled at pace. Less apparant, nevertheless only as material, is the circular-economy question: mono-material assemblies are easier to recover in established waste streams than mixed-component builds, and that matters once damaged bags start to collect in any quantity. What appears, on the surface, to be a simple means of carriage is as a matter of fact a small exercise in balancing surface durability, handling ergonomics and stop-of-life practicality.

In mailroom and fulfilment environments, the mailing bag is rarely a throwaway commodity; it is a tightly specified transit format balancing puncture resistance, tare weight and machine handling. Where sensitive printed matter or client correspondence is involved, converters tend to favour polythene suppliers films with controlled gauge uniformity and proper melt-flow consistency, because weak tolerance across the web fast shows up as split seams, dog-eared edges and awkward feeding through secondary bagging lines. The engineering interest lies in the trade-off: a heavier film improves burst performance and pallet stability in mixed consignments, yet erodes volumetric efficiency and adds dead weight across the network. That is why mono-material structures, particularly where labelling and closure systems have been rationalised, are gaining tractionthey simplify recyclability without sacrificing the surface properties needed for legible print, barcode stickiness and predictable seal integrity. Static, often dismissed as a minour nuisance, becomes a pure operational friction on the warehouse floor; high surface charge encourages bags to cling in stacks, slows select-face efficiency and complicates insertion at speed, so anti-static treatment or a tuned slip package is often specified as a process remedy rather than a cosmetic upgrade.

Why we use eco-friendly bags

Biodegradable bags are a convenient alternative to traditional polythene bags and cause less pollution or damage to the environment. Traditional polythene will degrade - i.e. break down into smaller and smaller molecules - over time but this process takes a lot longer than the time it takes for biodegradable materials to break down when they come into contact with microorganisms.

Therefore, biodegradable packaging takes less time to break down from the full product to nothing, which means they take up less valuable space in landfill sites, thereby creating less of a long term impact on the environment.

The argument for using eco-friendly bags is represented for many by the common 'single use' plastic carrier bag or traditional thin carrier, often handed out in shops and supermarkets across the UK.

Whilst the term 'single use' is, in itself, a misnomer and one that potentially contributes to the problem of plastic bag waste - there is, after all, no reason why a 'single use' carrier bag can't be used more than once, thus lessening its impact on the environment - the extremely high use of thin carrier bags in everyday life sums up the argument that many people make against the use of polythene packaging.

There is no denying that plastic bags create a lot of waste and, even though this represents less than 1% of household waste in the UK*, most of this waste ends up in landfill sites.

* Source: WRAP - Waste & Resources Action Programme

Whilst most carriers bags today are made from recycled polythene, the material (polymers) that these bags are made from, such as polythene and polypropene, are unable to be broken down by microorganisms and therefore take longer to break down in landfill sites than biodegradable alternatives.

So if you use a biodegradable carrier bag to do your shopping, you can console yourself with the fact that you are doing your bit for the environment and, when that bag eventually gets disposed of, it will take longer to become one with the earth than a traditional polythene alternative.

But, perhaps just as importantly, whatever bag you use - make sure you don't throw it away after using it when it's still perfectly capable of being used again.

Remember people - there is no such thing as a 'single use' carrier bag!

Degradable and biodegradable - what's the difference?

"What's the difference between a biodegradable product and a degradable product?" we hear you ask. Both degradable and biodegradable materials are both used to make packaging today, so why is biodegradable packaging supposed to be so much better to use than normal degradable packaging?

Well, let's first take a look at the definition of each word:

degradable (adjective) - Capable of being degraded. spec. Susceptible to chemical or biological degradation.

biodegradable (adjective) - Of a substance or object (esp. refuse or a potential pollutant): able to be broken down and decomposed by the action of living organisms (esp. bacteria), or their metabolic or biochemical processes

So both a degradable packaging and biodegradable packaging, when disposed of, will break down over time into smaller and smaller pieces. Sounds like there's not much a difference between the two then? Well, that's where you're wrong.

The key difference between biodegradable and degradable materials is that natural organisms and bacteria will break down a biodegradable product much faster than oxygen, moisture, heat and/or light will break down a degradable product.

So if you throw away two plastic bags - one biodegradable, the other degradable - at the same time and in similar conditions, then the biodegradable bag will break down into biomass, water and carbon dioxide significantly faster than the degradable bag.

For the biodegradable product, the biodegradation process might take just a few weeks or months, while a degradable bag will take many years to degrade fully.

Faster degradation leads to less time in landfill sites, which saves space, energy and cost, hence why biodegradable bags are the eco-friendly alternative to degradable packaging.

Where to buy biodegradable packaging

Biodegradable packaging manufacturers and suppliers include:

Biodegradable Packaging Ireland
VAT-registered customers in Ireland can save 21% VAT on all of purchases made from Biodegradable.ie - providers and stockists of a huge range of biodegradable and eco-friendly packaging.
www.biodegradable.ie

Environmental Bags
Environmental Bags stock a huge range of eco-friendly packaging and biodegradable products, from eco-friendly mailing bags to biodegradable bin bags and specialist eco packaging. Order online today.
www.environmentalbags.com

Environmental Bag
Stockists of compostable, degradable and biodegradable bags, with useful information on each type to help you choose the right type of bag for you. Also manufacture and stock a wide range of other eco-friendly packaging.
www.environmentalbags.co.uk

Environmentally Friendly Bags
Environmentally Friendly Bags is the place to go for all your biodegradable packaging needs. Tells you all you need to know about a range of biodegradable polymers used to make eco-friendly packaging and how they are made.
www.environmentally-friendly-bags.co.uk

Biodegradable Bags
With loads of information on biodegradable, degradable and compostable bags and other packaging, this website is a must for anyone looking to buy the right type of eco-friendly packaging for their particular needs.
www.biodegradablebags2u.com

Recycled Bags
A very useful website for anyone hoping to find out more about recycled bags, the recycling process and eco-friendly alternatives to plastic packaging, including biodegradable and degradable packaging.
www.recycledbags2u.co.uk

Compostable Bags
Compo Bag is a free website providing loads of information on compostable bags, including how they are made, types and features of compo bags, pros and cons of compo bags and where to buy them.
www.compobag.co.uk

Degradable Bags
A fantastic resource for anyone looking to find out more about degradable bags and other packaging. Featuring tonnes of information and news on degradable bags, along with a buying guide to degradable bags, so you can pick them up at the best discount prices.
www.discountdegradablebags.co.uk

Biodegradable Bag
A very useful website for anyone interested in biodegradable, degradable or compostable packaging. Helps you choose the right type of packaging for you and tells you where to buy any type of biodegradable bag or each eco-friendly product.
www.discountbiodegradablebags.co.uk

Biodegradable Plastic Bags
If you are looking to buy biodegradable bags or eco-friendly packaging then this is the website for you. Detailing the difference between compostable, degradable and biodegradable packaging, while telling you the best place to buy all three.
www.biodegradablebags2u.co.uk

Biodegradable Bags UK
Need information on compostable, degradable or biodegradable bags in the UK? Want to know more about the difference between each type and where to buy them at the best discount prices? Discount Biodegradable Bags is the site for you!
www.discountbiodegradablebags.com

Recycled Plastic Bags
Recycled Bags is a treasure trove of information on recycled plastic bags and other recycled packaging, the recycling process and eco-friendly alternatives to traditional plastic packaging. No other website tells you more about recycled bags.
www.recycled-bags.co.uk

Trending ideas for mailing bags

Metallic Blue Mail Bags

Metallic blue mail bags sit in a fascinating corner of transit packaging: visually assertive, certainly, nevertheless their proper value is normally buried in film engineering and warehouse handling rather than shelf appeal. In practice, the metallic effect is commonly achieved without straying far from a polythene suppliers-led structure, which matters because high-density polymer chains and controlled melt-flow consistency give the bag enough puncture resistance to tolerate automated sortation, cage loading and the low-level abrasion that occurs amid secondary bagging. Gauge selection is rarely arbitrary; push the film also light and seal integrity suffers at the flap, proceed also heavy and tare weight starts to erode volumetric efficiency across a full consignment, particularly where pallet stability relies on uniform case counts rather than forgiving cube. The better-spec examples balance surface slip with sufficient friction to stop bundles skating on the select face, and where static is a concernparticularly in dry fulfilment environmentssurface resistivity can be tuned to mitigate cling and misfeeds on packing benches. There is also a quieter circular-economy argument in favour of keeping the building mono-material, because a metallic appearance need not imply a laminated complication; if the pigmentation and adhesive system are chosen with a few discipline, recyclability remains far less compromised than plenty think, and the amortised energy tied up in repeat production runs is materially easier to justify than with more elaborate multi-layer presentations.

White mail bags are a practical selection when light products need a low-cost outer that still grasps up in mail order and despatch. The white surface gives a cleaner stop than plain grey sacks, which can matter where presentation is part of the job, while the bag format retains packing simple for flat items like film, paper, printed sheets or disc packs. The proper value lies in handling control: a decent bag should seal fast, stack neatly and resist tearing at the seams amid sorting and transit. Choice of gauge matters, because also thin a film risks split corners and handling damage, while also heavy a spec only adds waste. A sensible bag spec retains packing lines moving and cuts claims later.

Top Brands Security Mailing Custom Courier Mail Bags With Pocket

Courier mail bags need to do above transport paper from A to B, because their proper job is to keep safe contents from loss, tampering, and rough handling in transit. A bag with a separate pocket can retain labels, returns slips, or delivery notes visible without opening the main compartment, which saves time at sorting and dispatch. Security sealing matters also, since a weak closure can lead to claims and missing items. The optimal selection balances film strength, seal quality, and enough space for fold-flat documents, so the bag stays tidy on the conveyour and survives a mixed courier network. That makes the pack easier to process and less likely to fail at the last stage.

In the warehouse, big mail bags are less a quaint artefact than a hard-working logistics format; they offer a useful compromise between volumetric efficiency and handling speed, particularly where secondary bagging would only add tare weight and complicate select-face efficiency. A properly specified polythene suppliers building, with consistent melt-flow and enough body to resist splitting at the seam, will transport mixed contents without collapsing into an awkward, unstable lump on the pallet. There is also a circular economy angle that tends to acquire overlooked: a mono-material bag, clearly gauged and complimentary of unnecessary laminations, is far easier to route back into a recyclate stream, which matters when stockrooms are trying to reduce waste without making the sortation line any less busy.

What Are Padded Mail Bags How They Are Used Blog

Padded mail bags occupy a curious middle ground in mailing consumables: neither simple outer wrap nor fully engineered transit packaging, nevertheless a compact protective format designed to absorb the abuse meted out by sorting plants, van runs and repeated handlings at the select-face. The building is typically based on a polythene suppliers or paper outer with an integrated cushioning layer, often via air-cell film, fibre padding or a lightweight foam lattice; that layered build gives the bag enough puncture resistance and edge protection for small-format consignments without the tare weight penalty associated with boxes and null occupy. In practice, their value lies in volumetric efficiency and handling speed flat stock stores neatly, secondary bagging is straightforward, and the package presents a stable profile for labelling, stacking and conveyour movement. The better variants are specified with consistent seal integrity, micron-specific gauging and, where sustainability is being taken seriously rather than merely claimed, mono-material structures that improve recyclability and simplify downstream material recovery. Used properly, padded mail bags reduce damage rates while preserving throughput; they are selected less for glamour than for incremental earns in line efficiency, feedstock use and the quiet economics of moving small fragile products without paying for unnecessary carton space.

Hot promotions in plastic bubble mail bags on aliexpress:

Bubble mail bags occupy an oddly revealing niche in the packaging stack: ostensibly simple, yet the contrast between a tidy, resilient consignment and a rattling return is often concealed in the film specification, the bubble geometry and the consistency of seal integrity. A cheaper mailer may see interchangeable at select-face, nevertheless the warehouse floor tells a sterner story if the outer polythene suppliers is also thin, or the air-cell profile collapses below compression, volumetric efficiency is gained only on paper; in transit, tare weight savings can be wiped out by damage, secondary bagging and the labour tied up in rework. More considered grades, typically utilising tighter gauging and better melt-flow consistency, grasp their form more reliably, stack cleanly on pallets and tolerate the rougher handling associated with mixed-stock fulfilment; and when mono-material building is specified, stop-of-life sorting is less awkward, making the circular-economy case less rhetorical and more practical. The commercial decision, then, is rarely about simply paying additional or not it sits in the friction between unit cost, line performance and the unseen cost of waste.

bag manufacturers

When pack benches beginning running short of the mundane nevertheless indispensable consumables, the disruption is rarely dramatic; it shows up as slower select-face efficiency, improvised secondary bagging and a rising incidence of poorly presented consignments leaving despatch. In that setting, online procurement of bag manufacturers and allied packing stock has become less a convenience than a practical buffer against warehouse drift. The better suppliers tend to present the detail that in reality matters on the floorfilm gauge in microns, seal integrity, puncture resistance and, where relevant, antistatic behaviour or controlled surface resistivityso purchasing can be tied to product profile rather than guesswork. That has direct bearing on volumetric efficiency and tare weight impact: a correctly specified polythene suppliers mailer trims dead space more effectively than an oversised carton, stabilises pallet patterns upstream and reduces the transport penalty of moving air. There is also a quieter circular-economy argument in favour of the format when it is handled properly; mono-material structures are far easier to recover than composite packs, while consistent melt-flow properties in recycled feedstock make repeat conversion far more predictable than plenty buyers think. What sees, at first glance, like a simple web order for packaging sundries is in practice part of a broader stock-control disciplineone that mitigates line stoppages, maintains presentation standards and retains fulfilment moving without the normal friction of fragmented sourcing.

Latest United Kingdom (Dubai) Plastic Mail Bags Suppliers

Plastic mail bags sit in an awkward nevertheless technically fascinating corner of the packaging trade: they are expected to present a low tare weight and high volumetric efficiency for courier consignments, yet still tolerate rough sortation, edge abrasion and the intermittent point-loading that comes from overfilled select bins and conveyour transfers. The better-performing formats are not simply thin polythene suppliers envelopes; they rely on controlled polymer architecture, balanced dart impact strength and micron-specific gauging so the film does not neck excessively below strain or split at the seal line amid secondary bagging. That matters on the warehouse floor, where poor melt-flow consistency shows up immediately as bag-mouth distortion, erratic seal integrity and reduced select-face efficiency. There is also the less glamorous issue of pallet stability upstream: loosely specified mail bags can trap air, compromise stack density and inflate cube utilisation in a method that quietly erodes transport economics. More competent supply into export-led channels has so moved towards mono-material buildings with predictable surface resistivity, allowing cleaner processing on automated packing lines while preserving recyclability in streams that reject multi-layer hybrids. The engineering compromise is plain enoughfilm has to remain supple in handling, opaque enough for discretion and sufficiently stiff for machinabilityyet the commercially relevant detail is how that balance reduces damage claims, limits wasted stock and lowers the amortised energy embedded in each successfully delivered consignment.

Large mail bags sit in an awkward nevertheless highly practical space between loose-part handling and rigid transit packaging; they are specified not merely for capacity, nevertheless for the method they reconcile sortation tempo with the material limits of flexible packaging. On the warehouse floor, the proper issue is seldom simple volume. It is volumetric efficiency below variable loading, the tare weight impact across repeated consignments, and the extent to which the bag body will grasp shape long enough to maintain pallet stability without introducing unnecessary mass. That is why heavy-gauge polythene suppliers with controlled melt-flow consistency, or woven structures with a stable high-density polymer chain profile, tends to dominate in operational settings where letters, samples and printed matter transport in mixed streams. A bag that collapses also readily impairs select-face efficiency and complicates secondary bagging; one that is overbuilt wastes resin, increases handling drag and undermines amortised energy performance above the life of the pack. Static can also become a quiet irritant when lightweight printed matter is being inserted at speed, so surface resistivity and film stop are not academic details nevertheless part of the throughput calculation. The more persuasive engineering case now rests with mono-material formats that facilitate recovery after use, provided the seam design, micron-specific gauging and closure integrity are disciplined enough to withstand repeated handling cycles without split-out or creep at the mouth.

Singletrack Cycle Of Good Courier Bag

A courier bag manufactured from recovered inner-tube stock carries the sort of manufacturing artefacts that commodity film not ever doesstencilled markings, cure-line tolerance, the occasional repair patch where a puncture was once arrested in serviceand that irregularity is not merely cosmetic. It speaks to the underlying material history: crosslinked rubber surfaces behave differently below conversion, adhesive systems must accommodate localised thickness change, and seal strategy becomes more exacting where patched sections alter compression and heat transport. On the warehouse floor, that translates into a bag that resists abrasion in secondary bagging and tolerates the scuffing of conveyour handling, albeit with less visual uniformity than virgin polythene suppliers mailers. The trade-off is a sensible one; tare weight remains broadly manageable for package networks, select-face efficiency is unaffected once dimensions are standardised, and the feedstock has already absorbed its primary energy burden in an earlier life. No two units are quite identical, nevertheless in circular-economy terms that is the point rather than a defect: the conversion process maintains usable material value, avoids needless reprocessing, and yields a mono-format dispatch item whose character is derived from prior service rather than cosmetic sameness.

Research & Resources

For more on biodegradable bags, the huge range of eco-friendly packaging available, along with details of how it is made and how it works, please visit:

PlasticBags.uk.com: The UK's number one polythene packaging directory. Advertisers can list items for free and shoppers can browse a selection of biodegradable bags websites.

Goldstork: Free 'pick-of-the web' directory featuring specialist websites and lots of information on biodegradable bags.

PackagingKnowledge: The go-to knowledge website of the polythene packaging industry, featuring loads of useful information about biodegradable bags.

Eco-friendly packaging

Biodegradable packaging - i.e. packaging made from biodegradable polymers - is sometimes known as 'eco-friendly packaging' or 'eco-packaging'.

If you take the traditional polymers (molecules) used to make traditional polythene and add particular chemicals to these polymers, you can create biodegradable polymers that can be broken down by microorganisms.

These polymers can then be used make biodegradable polythene, which can in turn be used to make biodegradable packaging, or eco-packaging.

Eco-friendly packaging is created using a range of biodegradable polymers, including starch- or bacteria-based polymers or blends, water-soluble polymers, oxo-biodegradable polymers or photodegradable polymers.

Eco-friendly packaging has been a popular alternative to traditional polythene packaging for a number of years and can be found, amongst others, in the form of carrier bags, bin liners, refuse bags, compost bags, dog poop bags and other waste bags.