The French Agency for the Environment and Energy Management (ADEME) released a report on 14 November on the environmental impact of fruit and vegetable bags.
The ADEME report, entitled ‘The environmental impact of fruit and vegetable bags’, demonstrates the environmental performance of bio-based compostable plastic bags in a lifecycle assessment and their ability to be home composted when the correct practice is observed. The Agency recommends that compostable bags should be used with a vented kitchen caddy for the separate collection of food waste. However, the report also suggests that compostable bags should be charged for, as opposed to being provided to householders for free.
The French trade association for bio-based and biodegradable plastic producers, Club Bio-plastiques, has largely welcomed the report, though it is critical of the recommendation to charge for compostable bags as it could hinder the development of the composting industry in France.
The President of Club Bio-plastiques, Christophe Doukhi-de Boissoudy, said: “This report comforts us in the belief that our products really contribute to food waste collection and organic recycling. In the midst of the current debates on the draft legislation on Circular Economy, we call upon Members of the Parliament to provide our products and biowaste recycling the deserved treatment. This is essential to achieve the waste management objectives fixed for 2023.”
You can view the report (in French) on the ADEME website.