How much water is used to make the biodegradable packaging in comparison with regular plastic packaging?
BY: During the manufacturing of plastics, about 8 percent of the raw materials volume is water. This water is not recyclable and is dumped as waste during extrusion cooling and venting. [Green Century Enterprises Inc.] products are made from 95 percent reed fibre and bagasse and 5 percent water. The water is distilled water used in the Kraft process for papermaking and is recycled afterward to be used again in the next process. In fact, it can be re-used up to six times before it must be discarded. SC: If you look at [water consumption] at the converter level (the factory where the final product is made), regular plastic molding uses no water. Neither does the molding of bio-plastic products. Sugarcane and other paper-based materials do use some water, but the amount per package would depend on the proprietary blend/process that a manufacturer uses, whether or not it is recycled, and whether or not it is settled or treated before being released back into the environment. Beyond the con
