According to the American non-profit organization Plastic Oceans International, more than 10 million tons of plastic are dumped into the ocean every year. According to National Geographic, plastic can take over 400 years to decompose. Since the mid-1900s, 8,3 billion metric tons of plastic have been produced worldwide. How to dispose of so much plastic waste? This question has baffled scientists for years.
BioLogiQ, since its founding in 2011, has worked to create environmentally friendly plastic products from renewable materials. “[…] We started making plastic from potato waste, specifically from starch,” BioLogiQ CEO Steven Sherman recently told Idaho Statesman.
Traditional plastics are made up of polymers, substances made up of large molecules that repeat themselves over and over again, such as polyethylene and polystyrene. These polymers can take hundreds of years to decompose.
BioLogiQ is implementing its own "iQ technology", which uses additives such as potato and corn starch or naturally occurring glycerin derived from vegetable oils and animal fats in the production of plastics.
The resulting plastic decomposes faster because it is much easier for microorganisms to break down substances such as starch and glycerin.