WalMart To Use Corn-Based Plastic

My father is highly allergic to genetically modified corn and has been admitted to the hospital twice for a lack of proper labelling on the foods he was consuming.

This corn-based plastic thing is interesting, though - I've never heard of this alternative to conventional plastic. I'll try to read more about it, but can anyone else provide pros and cons on the different plastics? Thanks in advance!

QUOTE:

"The eco-effectiveness of this move must be weighed against the fact that the plastic will come from NatureWorks, a division of Cargill Dow."

This is the kind of thinking that gets the environmental movement painted with the same brush used to tar religious fundamentalists. Is the idea supposed to be that because Cargill Dow as a corporate entity is an environmental offender, no action they take can ever be simply accepted as eco-friendly?

The religious folks have a word for this sort of concept: "sin." The notion that the removal of who knows how many thousands of tons of petrochemical-based plastic from the disposable packaging chain is somehow "tainted" by the fact that it's being removed by Cargill Dow is mystical thinking at best.

A worldview that tends to reject practical environmental gains in the name of idealistic orthodoxy hobbles progress.

It's in no way part of an orthodoxy. It's highly practical to mention that the company is active involved in genetic modification of corn. This is inefficient and is the antithesis of organic techniques. The bioplastic will not be derived from a beneficial source.

Perhaps instead of genetically modified corn (which likely uses less pesticides and water than normal corn) plastic containers should be made of organic, small farm free range corn that has been sung lullabies every night.

ok to begin with i find it very interesting that WalMart has taken this move. What with their ubergreen vancouver pitch, their green TX buildings, this bioplastic play and of course their new agenda to beef up the green consiousness of their overseas partners... hmmm can we see a day when we will all be keeping up with Walmart?

.....................now Ian-- i understand how you want us to be liked and popular and not seem like zealots. BUT it's not t just that Naturworks PLA is Cargil and therefore big bad company... Naturworks and Cargil has made it impossible for other (more than) equally efficient and green(er) bioplastics from entering the market for over 10 years. They have made it near impossible for bioplastics made from food waste (and beer waste) from hitting the market with the same litigious style that the oil companies used to slow solar for over 20 years (check out what Amoco did to screw every other solarPV manufacturer).

.....................They also are to tally non-cooperative with pretty much everyone else involved with bioplastics (unless of course you are a bipoplastic board, can use a contribution, and are willing to genuflect and kiss naturwork butt)

.............................On top of which they insist on using corn (um, aren't there hungry people still on this planet?), just like that idiotic ethanol play...(perhaps a tip of the hat to good 'ol Dwayne Andreas' kids)> There are only like 10 companies making plastic out of waste and/or non-food plants, what did corn ever do to us? and worse yet as previously mentioned they are using GM corn, basically poisening the well for all of us.

............................do you think that becuse a few glad wraps and tupperwares are going to be made with naturworks makes it all ok? (and no, haven't even ventured into the vegan arguments as to why cargil is satan, just the PLAfacts)

here's a link for how Walmart may just lead the pack someday to sustainability (after all... they can buy in quantities that make green products more affordable.... wonder what the hippies will do, on the one side they want green products to be cheap. but won't that be a big crow sandwhich having to buy them in the walmart green aisle? (or worse yet, if all their products become green... ha ha ha funny dream, then i wake up)

I have a PhD in molecular biology and have done research using "genetic engineering" with cereal crops. I work at a university and am engaged in this debate over GMOs all the time.
The fact is that there are pros and cons to every way of producing food on the planet. There are risks associated with GMOs and there are risks with organics, too. There are some bad fungi out there that if left unchecked in vegetables, are much more hazardous to many more people than some GMOs. There are benefits and risks to both systems. I shop at my local CO-OP and farmer's market. But I am not necessarily opposed to GMOs if there is a clear description of what's been put where. Labeling is important since the lines for food allergies have been blurred. GMOs are not necessarily villains if they are properly conceived. Keep in mind that every modern crop is "genetically modified" from it's original form. And we have been doing this for centuries. This is just a different means to accomplish it.
I think what we need to be against are big corporations that push shoddy products out into the marketplace solely to increase their income. This goes for everything, not just biotech companies.
Perhaps we'll see a time where we engineer corn solely for it's ability to make plastics, or super soybeans for biodiesel (a pet project of mine). Ecoplastics are a good thing no matter who is making them. But keep an eye on the big companies, especially if you aren't a fan of their businesses.

The local green market to me switched to this plastic earlier this year. I just throw it in my composter when done. Takes a long time to break down, though, as all processed foods do.

This isn't an eco- as in ecological so much as eco- as in economics for Wal-Mart. Oil prices are up and likely will continue going up. Plastic is a petroleum-based product. Do the math.

I would like this trend to continue, though, and Wal-Mart's megabucks will definitely make it more affordable and available to other businesses. I just don't know what they are going to do when fertilizer (petroleum-based) is too expensive to grow corn in the volume that we currently do.

Wow!
I love this site!
Your discussions are enlightening.
Go people, go!

what to do when fertilixzer gets too expensive???
how about REMINERALIZING THE BIOSPHERE FINALLY?
1) increased yields means more bang for buck, plus 2) if you only have to apply it once every few years (and rocks are cheaper than chemmies) then its cheaper too

plus... i kinda agree with Dave; some GMO might be very helpful... look-- we all like Plantic right? thats GMO.. and there are GMO algaes that are now turning into hydrogen and biodiesel... Doesn't make Cargil non-evil, but maybe Dave is onto something..

Ladies & gents of treehugger

The problem of corn based plastics is that it is very expensive. Why ? Because the processing is too long.
Solution ? Well, my company just found and in production of making a cheap bio degradable plastics based on tapioca. If the price for corn based plastics is more than twice the price of ordinary plastics, then the price for tapioca plastic is 20% above the ordinary plastics. Right now, I produce the plastics in Indonesia, where there are alot of tapioca, soon it will be in Thailand, China, and maybe in Africa.

Please noted that the ordinary plastics will not dissolve into soil in 1000 years; while bio degradable plastics (should pass the standard ISO) will disollve 60% in 6 months. I can make it 70% in 6 months. In Indonesia, it will vanish completely in 12 months.

Please support my company & research to a better environment.

Plastics form corn

Normal-plastics are made from petroleum. They cause many pollutions, because they can't dissolve in the nature. So the new technology was produced Corn-Plastics. They are made from flour or sugar of corn. The benefit of plastics from corn has two ways.

First, corn-plastics have profits about environment. They reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) to the nature, because CO2 is a cause of Greenhouse effect. They can dissolve by themselves in short periods of time. They take just 45 days to dissolve, while normal-plastics can take thousands of years to decompose. Finally, they have benefit about application. They are used as raw materials for sending medicines in medic service and controlling velocity of extension the medicines. Other raw materials in medic service are a bandage, a fitter paper, a blotting paper and a sink. They are used to contain the plants and sent the manure on time in farming. They are used to pack of cold food.

In conclusion, plastics made from corn have many benefits. They are friendliness with environment. What do you think about Plastics from corn?

Plastics form corn

Normal-plastics are made from petroleum. They cause many pollutions, because they can't dissolve in the nature. So the new technology was produced Corn-Plastics. They are made from flour or sugar of corn. The benefit of plastics from corn has two ways.

First, corn-plastics have profits about environment. They reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) to the nature, because CO2 is a cause of Greenhouse effect. They can dissolve by themselves in short periods of time. They take just 45 days to dissolve, while normal-plastics can take thousands of years to decompose. Finally, they have benefit about application. They are used as raw materials for sending medicines in medic service and controlling velocity of extension the medicines. Other raw materials in medic service are a bandage, a fitter paper, a blotting paper and a sink. They are used to contain the plants and sent the manure on time in farming. They are used to pack of cold food.

In conclusion, plastics made from corn have many benefits. They are friendliness with environment. What do you think about Plastics from corn?

Plastics form corn

Normal-plastics are made from petroleum. They cause many pollutions, because they can't dissolve in the nature. So the new technology was produced Corn-Plastics. They are made from flour or sugar of corn. The benefit of plastics from corn has two ways.

First, corn-plastics have profits about environment. They reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) to the nature, because CO2 is a cause of Greenhouse effect. They can dissolve by themselves in short periods of time. They take just 45 days to dissolve, while normal-plastics can take thousands of years to decompose. Finally, they have benefit about application. They are used as raw materials for sending medicines in medic service and controlling velocity of extension the medicines. Other raw materials in medic service are a bandage, a fitter paper, a blotting paper and a sink. They are used to contain the plants and sent the manure on time in farming. They are used to pack of cold food.

In conclusion, plastics made from corn have many benefits. They are friendliness with environment. What do you think about Plastics from corn?

Is corn polymer soluble in corn oil?