Composting and certification

CARBIOS Active makes biosourced and biodegradable plastics compostable, even at ambient temperature.

Every year, an individual living in the United States generates 221 kg of plastic waste, in contrast to 114 kg in European countries and 69 kg in Japan and Korea (source: OECD, 2022).

These remarkable statistics can be reduced through various means, including increasing waste collection rates (compliance with sorting instructions) and adopting new recovery technologies. One such technology is PLA biodegradation, which should be promoted, especially in cases where recycling is not a feasible option.

40%

Of residual household waste could be recycled by combining domestic composting and collective biological management processes (composting or methanisation)*

Thanks to CARBIOS Active, PLA-based plastics are 100% compostable, even at room temperature. In this way, it contributes to the democratisation of bio-waste sorting and composting.

Source: ADEME – MODECOM 2017, National campaign to characterise household and similar waste

Law
What does the law say?
Under the French Energy Transition for Green Growth Act (LTECV) of 2015, reinforced by the European Directive (EU) 2018/851 of May 30, 2018, and the Anti-Waste for a Circular Economy Law (AGEC) of 2020, source separation of bio-waste has been mandatory for everyone — individuals, businesses, and local authorities — since January 1, 2024.
In practical terms, this means that bio-waste sorting solutions (such as composting systems or dedicated collection bins) must be made available to users to allow for separate collection and treatment of organic waste.
At the same time, the AGEC law supports the ambitious goal of zero single-use plastic by 2040, by progressively banning certain plastic packaging, encouraging reuse and recycling, and promoting the development of a circular economy across all sectors of production and consumption.

With CARBIOS Active, PLA packaging can be recycled in two ways:

Composting

Composting is the biological process of breaking down and transforming fermentable materials into a recyclable product from waste. The organic components are broken down by soil microorganisms, which thrive in the presence of water and oxygen. This process leads to a temperature increase, resulting in the creation of a humified and stabilized organic material known as compost.

CARBIOS Active

Methanisation

Methanization is the natural biological process of breaking down organic matter in the absence of oxygen, unlike composting. Organic pollutants are converted by microorganisms into a gaseous product, including methane, and a residual sludge called digestate, both of which have the potential for reuse. Methanization is also a technique used in anaerobic digestion plants, where the process is accelerated and maintained to produce a combustible gas known as biogas, which becomes biomethane after purification. Bio-waste can thus be recovered in the form of energy, offering numerous advantages, including the dual recovery of organic matter and energy.

CARBIOS Active’s benefits​

With CARBIOS Active, flexible and rigid PLA packaging becomes 100% compostable, even at room temperature, and thus joins bio-waste when collected. In an industrial environment, our technology guarantees homogeneous composting of PLA packaging, producing marketable compost free of microplastics.

What’s more, CARBIOS Active guarantees 3x greater methanogenic power and efficiency from 38°C, enabling mesophilic centers (the most numerous in France) to process PLA packaging.

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Regulations and certifications of compostable plastics

As plastic pollution has emerged as a significant societal concern, numerous international organizations, including governments, unions, industries, research centers, certification and standardization bodies, and others, are actively engaged in developing and adopting new materials, such as biodegradable and compostable polymers.

At the national level, legislation is being enacted to establish dedicated composting systems, with the objective of reducing the use of conventional plastics in single-use products and non-recyclable plastics. These efforts are manifested through standards and labels affixed to products, serving as evidence of their compliance.

Compostable in industrial environment
Compostable in domestic environment
Biodegradable in soil
Compostable in industrial environment
Compostable in domestic environment
Biodegradable in soil

Specification standards
France: NF EN 13432 « emballage  » / NF EN 14995 « matières plastiques »
USA: ATSM D6400 « Plastics and products made from plastics »
Australia: AS 4736 « plastics »

Applications regulated
Italy: single use plastic bags
Several states of the USA (ex. California): single use plastic bags

 

Specification standards
France: NF T51-800 « plastiques »
Australia: AS 5810 « plastics »

Applications regulated
France: single use plastic bags / routing film
European Union: single use kitchen utensils (2021)

 

Specification standards
France: NF U52-001 « matériaux biodégradables pour l’agriculture et l’horticulture » / NF EN 17033 « films de paillage »

Analysis and testing standards
USA: ATSM D5988 « plastics materials »