Title: [GreenYes] Plastic-ware
Arthur:
On your related matter, there's a line of plasticware by a company called
Recycline that is made from 100% recycled polypropylene. They can be reused
and then, if recycling programs exist for #5's, may be able to be recycled
with the 5's, you'd need to check with the local recyclers. Or, I think the
company may take them back to be recycled into plastic lumber.
http://www.recycline.com/
I have no idea how the price compares to biodegradable or regular
plasticware. It seems to be stronger construction and might last more times
through a washing machine. I can get you in touch with the president if
you'd like.
Amy
--
Amy Perlmutter
Principal, Perlmutter and Associates
Fellow, Lowell Center for Sustainable Production, UMass
23 Avon Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
617-354-5456
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From: GreenYes group <noreply@no.address>
Date: Mon, 03 Sep 2007 09:04:37 +0000
To: GreenYes digest subscribers <GreenYes@no.address>
Subject: 2 new messages in 2 topics - digest
Date: Sun, Sep 2 2007 9:46 pm
From: arthur boone
Today was my second day sorting discards at an urban street festival in
Oakland, CA. It's an admission fee-based, fenced-in, enclosed streets area
with all food vendors pledged to use biodegradable cutlery. The recycling
manager is pretty sure all the food vendors in the enclosed area are doing
the right thing but probably 10%, in some loads as high as 50%, of the
eating utensils coming into our sort tables are plain old plastic knives,
forks, and spoons. They look enough different that they're easy to pick out
from the biodegradable units but the idea of ignoring all utensils in
"cleaning-up" pre-compostables is not correct, or so it seems to me. We
think people are bringing these utensils with them into the enclosed area.
(We're not planning any Homeland Security-type inspections at the ticket
gates.) Your experience?
On a related matter, recently I worked out an arrangement with a large
meals program (250-300 per day) at a St. Vincent dePaul dining room to
provide them with used plastic cutlery as I acquire it. (They found the loss
factor with metal utensils very high and switched to plastic cutlery several
years ago which they wash in their dishwashing system until broken or lost.)
Has anyone tried reusing/rewashing PLA-based utensils? Some I've fiddled
with take up stains from ambient food sauces but it 's been less than 10%.
Handwashing has been easy to do but I haven't tried machine-washing yet. Is
there data on user acceptance on stained PLA? Laws prohibiting reuse? Etc?
Reuse is better than composting (they say).
Thank you.
ARBoone
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