Biodegradability and compostability of the packaging

A team of experienced J. S. experts Hamilton has been offering services in the field of confirming the quality and safety of products, and above all supports environmentally friendly solutions.

Environmentally friendly materials and packaging have become very popular in recent years. This is directly due to emerging environmental trends, increasing public awareness and market demands.

Such packaging can be a green alternative to standard products. The growing market demand for such products causes many manufacturers to focus their attention on creating and improving compostable and biodegradable materials.

The terms biodegradable and compostable can refer to a product which, in the European Union, complies with the requirements of the harmonised directive 94/62 EC norm EN 13432:2000, EN 14995:2006, assessing the composting capacity of plastics, as well as EN ISO 20200:2015 and EN 14045:2003 (determination of the degree of decomposition of the sample under simulated composting conditions at the laboratory scale).

The conformity assessment for biodegradable and compostable material consists of the following steps:

• Characteristics of the material – identification of the components of the material and their identification;
• Testing of elements (Zn, Cu, Ni, Cb, Pb, Hg, Cr, Mo, Se, As, F);
• Compostability – sieve analysis;
• Biodegradability – degradation of the material under controlled laboratory conditions;
• Ecotoxicity – the rate of germinated seeds and the increase in plant mass on the resulting compost.
• Our laboratory offers tests of biodegradability and compostability of products.