Fossil fuels are one of the top five contributors to greenhouse gases (GHG) and are the key ingredient in all plastic. But ErthCycle products are different, from the beginning of their life to the end.

From the start, ErthCycle products are produced with up to 40% fewer fossil fuels than standard plastic packaging because we infuse our packaging with two natural additives, the first of which is calcium carbonate (aka limestone). Our calcium carbonate additive decreases the overall amount of carbon produced in creation, therefore making ErthCycle an infinitely better alternative to standard plastics.

The second natural additive to ErthCycle products is Eco-One® technology. While this organic material is added during creation, it comes into play once ErthCycle products are discarded. Eco-One® technology organically biodegrades ErthCycle packaging within a landfill environment at greatly accelerated rates.

So, what makes this better? The key is biodegradation versus degradation. Imagine you have two XL pizzas, one made of standard plastic and one made of ErthCycle. When the standard plastic pizza is discarded, it begins to degrade, being sliced into millions of pieces…but it’s still an XL pizza’s worth of standard plastic. The end result of ErthCycle’s biodegradation is no pizza at all, thanks to our Eco-One® technology. When materials biodegrade, they do break into smaller pieces. So, at one point in the ErthCycle pizza’s life cycle, there will be “micro-ErthCycle-pizzas.” But then our microbes continue to consume that ErthCycle pizza until nothing is left besides harmless calcium. The “microplastics” that happen during ErthCycle’s biodegradation won’t infiltrate our waterways or bloodstreams to the same extent as the ones created by standard plastics.

Below are current ASTMD5511 testing data on ErthCycle products, which simulate a landfill environment. Under this testing protocol, ErthCycle’s polypropylene and polyethylene (read, plastics) biodegraded 76.7% in 695 days (less than two years). Standard plastic packaging can take up to 500 years to degrade, sometimes even longer! Check out the data (it’s cool data, seriously)!

Outside of the ASTM D5511 method and on the assumption that the positive control (Celulose) will fully biodegrade, all values have been proportionally adjusted. Wanna dive deeper? Check out the full report here.

It means that ErthCycle plastics are here to change the game!

So, here’s a question: If ErthCycle products biodegrade at an accelerated rate, doesn’t that mean they release gas at faster rates than typical plastic packaging? Isn’t that…bad?

Short answer: Not necessarily.

Long answer: ErthCycle packaging releases gas at a faster rate than standard plastic packaging because it is actually biodegrading, while the standard plastic is slowly (like, 500 years slowly) breaking down. ErthCycle products do not have a fragmentation mechanism like standard plastics do; our products are not creating microplastics.

1.) Because ErthCycle uses up to 40% fewer fossil fuels than standard plastics, it means that our product off-gases less than standard plastics. ErthCycle has shown a significant reduction in carbon output when compared to standard plastics. In fact, ErthCycle has been awarded a Carbon Credit Reduction Certification.

2.) The EPA has created a Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP), partnering with landfills to capture off-gasing and turn it into new, reusable energy. So…can we say that even at the end of ErthCycle’s life, these products can still contribute back to our future? We’ll let you decide. ツ

We’re not claiming to be the product that will solve the climate crisis (we wish we were!). We are a driven team with an innovative product that is actively working against plastic pollution in our oceans and landfills. Practical sustainability by massive corporations is a better next step than no step at all. ErthCycle is offering all companies, big and small, an easy, cost-neutral way to make a real, tangible difference with their products and curb their plastic waste.

As we continue forward, our team plans to build partnerships with participating LMOP facilities across the U.S. The EPA has retrofitted hundreds of U.S. landfills to capture the off-gasing of methane and CO2 and then convert those gases into alternative energy. As ErthCycle products end up in LMOP landfills, their biodegradation suddenly becomes more than environmentally friendly – it becomes new alternative energy! In addition, our dedicated team is continuing to research and innovate additional ways to combat pollution and climate change. Stay tuned because there’s more to come… ツ