Exciting Costco find - compostable cutlery!

[Globetrotter]

Costco has a set of plant based cutlery, which means they are compostable :yay:

It was $10 for a pack of 300, and the best part is, it includes 150 forks, 100 spoons and only 50 knives! These are sturdy, too. I bought corn based ones a few years ago, and those kept breaking.

I just wanted to share this, especially during the holiday season when people might be looking to buy them (great for picnics, too).

I must be getting old because this is making me very happy :ROTFLMAO:

[khalloc]

I wouldn't get too excited just yet. The University of Vermont used this and just had to stop recently because the local recycle place stopped allowing it. It wasn't actually composting like it was supposed too.

[marie]

I wouldn't get too excited just yet. The University of Vermont used this and just had to stop recently because the local recycle place stopped allowing it. It wasn't actually composting like it was supposed too.

I thought I had heard something about them not being all they are cracked up to be and then when I read your post I realized it was 2 UVM students who told me! They were also complaining about the corn-based bowls that would start dissolving as they were using them. (OT - makes me wonder about people with corn allergies. . .)

so, yeah, jury is still out unfortunately.

[xmasbabycomin]

What's the brand name on them? I'm still thinking if it's those or plastic (esp. at a comparable price), they'd probably be be better, but it would be good to know all the choices. I had the green Preserve at DSs birthday party last year and I ended up digging through the trash to recover a lot, despite the separate container with big sign
next to the trash can. I might keep those at home.

eta: interesting (and depressing) link, but I'm not sure if this is re. the same item; Costco.com does carry this brand, though:
http://www.ecoproducts.com/va-cms/a_message_about_our_cutlery.html

[brittone2]

The co-op grocery in our former hometown was using a corn based plastic for the salad bar. When they first introduced it, they mentioned it would not compost in a regular compost pile (like you would have home). Instead it needed one that got super hot. So you could (theoretically) compost it by putting in the right bin at the store for them to dispose of, but it wouldn't break down in your average home compost pile. In reality, I'm not sure whether it was actually breaking down in the "hotter" compost pile or not.

[Globetrotter]

good to know! It seems not all compostable cutlery works as promised, but some DO.

This brand is Eco Greenwares. Here is something from their website:

http://www.ecogreenwares.com/biodegradable/compostable/faq/bagasse-pla.html

I looked into this and Burlington (VT) Free Press had some articles on the issue, but I didn't have time to read them all. It seems that, as long as they get BPI certification, they should be compostable and these appear to have the certification, but I'm not 100% sure. I'm going to contact them to find out!

[amldaley]

When I had the coffee shop, we used Fabri-kal Greenware brand cold cups. They melted even if you just put hot coffee in them or if you left them in a hot car. We had several regular customers compost their daily smoothie cups with no complaints. However, they don't do cutlery.

I guess my question is, if the other stuff is not decomposing the way it is supposed to, is it breaking down at all? Is it given off any toxins or undesirable byproducts? Isn't it STILL better than plastic even if not perfect?

[khalloc]

It might be better than plastic, but it still has to go to a landfill since your local recycling plant might not take it if it doesnt break down as advertised.

[xmasbabycomin]

Wow, I'm confused. Eco greenwares talks about BPI certification on their website
but didn't come up on BPIs database when I did a search. And the info on their site
certainly made it sound like all of their stuff is compostable, but if it's not certified and
it has to be placed in a commercial compost to degrade (which this pic indicates:)
http://www.easyecoblog.com/287/green-bbq-with-bamboo-plates/

of which there are none near me, (see findacomposter.com), then I'm just not
sure. Does decomposition in a landfill matter?