We are pleased to announce a low minimum quantity option – Smart Tech plastic bags.  They are more environmentally-friendly than traditional plastic bags for two reasons.  First, their design results in source reduction; they are engineered such that less plastic is needed compared to a regular plastic bag without compromising performance.  Second, Smart Tech plastic bags are made with 100% renewable energy from sources like wind and solar power.

Features

• Source reduction
• Made with renewable power
• Recyclable – can be safely recycled with other polyethylene products
• Safe for packaging food
• Postal-Approved

Green Packaging offers Smart Tech plastic bags as an option for customers with low quantity requirements.  They are more environmentally-friendly than traditional plastic bags for two reasons.  First, their design results in source reduction; they are engineered such that less plastic is needed compared to a regular plastic bag without compromising performance.  Second, Smart Tech plastic bags are made with 100% renewable energy from sources like wind and solar power.

Features

• Source reduction
• Made with renewable power
• Recyclable – can be safely recycled with other polyethylene products
• Safe for packaging food
• Postal-Approved

Options

• Many sizes available
• Naturally clear in color

ASTM 6400 –  a compostability standard that defines a plastic as compostable if it undergoes a 60% biodegradation within 180 days under commercial composting conditions

Biodegradable – capable of being decomposed by bacteria or other biological means

Biodegradable Plastic (see Introduction to Biodegradable and Compostable Plastics)

Bioplastic (see Introduction to Biodegradable and Compostable Plastics)

Compostable – capable of being used as compost

Compostable Plastic (see Introduction to Biodegradable and Compostable Plastics)

Ethylene - a colorless, flammable gas usually obtained from petroleum and natural gas and used in the synthesis of polyethylene

Extrude – to form plastic with a desired cross section by forcing it through a die

Extruder - a machine that transforms resin into film and another name for a manufacturer of film

Film - a thin sheet of plastic that can be converted into plastic bags or tubing

mil - .001 inches (i.e. a thousandth of an inch); NOT a millimeter.  For example, a Ziploc® sandwich bag is 1.5 mil and a freezer bag is 2.7 mil

Poly Bag - a plastic bag made of polyethylene

Polyethylene – a plastic polymer of ethylene  used for packaging

Polymer – a large molecule composed of repeating structural units

Postal-Approved – formulated to comply with the USPS T-3204 protocol for use on automation rate flat-size mail pieces. Performance standards met include haze, blocking, coefficient of friction and static charge decay

Recyclable – able to be recycled

Recycle – to treat or process used or waste materials so as to make suitable for reuse

Recycled Polyethylene (see Introduction to Recycled Polyethylene)

Resin - small beads of raw plastic used to produce plastic film

Virgin Poly - polyethylene that has no additives and has not been recycled

There are two types of recycled polyethylene:

• Post-Consumer Recycled Polyethylene (PCR PE) are plastics made from the consumer stream of waste – bottles, caps and recycled plastic bags collected in commercial and residential recycling programs. Due to the variety of polyethylene materials used, PCR PE can have a wide range of densities. Due to these inconsistencies, PCR PE has to be blended with virgin polyethylene to make film. And since the recycled materials are contaminated with impurities (dirt, cellulose, and inorganic materials), the amount of virgin PE that needs to be blended is dependent on the quality of the PCR PE.
• Post-Industrial Recycled Polyethylene (PIR PE and aka Pre-Consumer Polyethylene) – polyethylene film leftover from either extruding film or converting it into bags and tubing. Resin makers do not face the same challenges making PIR PE as they do PCR PE due to minimal impurities (dust) and absence of density variations. Therefore, PIR PE made using 100% recycled content is possible.

Although, Green Packaging Inc.’s Post-Industrial Recycled Poly Bags consist entirely of recycled content, some customers prefer Post-Consumer Recycled Poly Bags since they believe its use has a bigger impact on helping the environment.

The Post-Industrial Recycled Poly Bags that Green Packaging Inc. offers contains 100% recycled content.

Features

• Made of recycled materials
• Recyclable – can be safely recycled with other polyethylene products

Options

• Virtually any size available
• Naturally clear in color with white and custom colors available
• Many custom packaging types
• Printing up to 10 colors on 2 sides and a water-based ink option available

The Post-Consumer Recycled Poly Bags that Green Packaging Inc. offers contains a minimum of 50% recycled content.

Features

• Made of recycled materials
• Recyclable – can be safely recycled with other polyethylene products

Options

• Virtually any size available
• Naturally clear in color with white and custom colors available
• Many custom packaging types
• Printing up to 10 colors on 2 sides and a water-based ink option available

Note: Because our bags are made-to-order, minimum quantities are required. For a 10″ x 10″ x 2 mil recycled bag the minimum quantity would be roughly 35,000 but different constructions have different minimums so we encourage you to Request a Quote to know for sure.  For customer with low quantity requirements, Green Packaging offers Smart Tech Plastic Bags which can be purchased in cases 1,000 bags.

• Biodegradable Polyethylene is made by combining traditional polyethylene which is petroleum-based with an additive.  The various additives commercially available work in one of two ways:
  • Physical Degradation followed by Biodegradation – Depending on the additive, either light, heat, water or mechanical stress alters the physical properties of the plastic such that microbes in the environment are then able to biodegrade it.  These types of additives are categorized as oxo-degradable, photo-degradable or hydro-degradable.
  • Biodegradation – like bioplastics, the plastic starts degrading when in contact with a sufficient number of microbes.  Although the plastic does not degrade in commercial composting conditions as quickly as bioplastics certified by the Biodegradable Product Institute, it does degrade in compost.  It also degrades in landfills and water unlike bioplastic.

• Compostable Bioplastic (aka organic plastic) is a type of plastic made from renewable sources rather than petroleum-based plastics.  The more common types of bioplastics are:
  • Polylactic acid (PLA) produced from cane sugar or glucose
  • Starch-based
  • Cellulose-based

Although the manufacturing of bioplastic materials is reliant upon petroleum as an energy and materials source, it is generally regarded as a more sustainable activity when compared to petroleum-based plastics.   However, 100% bioplastic material cannot be used to produce film for plastic bags as it is too brittle; to soften the film, the bioplastic is combined with biodegradable polymers which are petroleum-based.  Compostable Bioplastic is bioplastic that degrades under commercial composting conditions as per ASTM 6400* and is certified by the Biodegradable Product Institute.  Note that not all bioplastics are compostable.

• Compostable Plastic, like Compostable Bioplastic, is certified to degrade under commercial composting conditions as per ASTM 6400* and is certified by the Biodegradable Product Institute.  It differs from Compostable Bioplastic in that it is not made from renewable resources; it is made from petroleum-based products.  The petroleum-based plastic is combined with an additive that makes it compostable.

* To meet ASTM 6400 standards, a plastic needs to exhibit 60% biodegradation within 180 days in commercial composting conditions.

Green Packaging Inc.’s Biodegradable and Compostable Plastics

• Compostable Bioplastics - Although not all bioplastics are designed to be compostable, the bioplastics Green Packaging Inc. offers are.
• Biodegradable Polyethylene – Green Packaging Inc. only offers Biodegradable Polyethylene that is made with bio-degradable additives; we do not offer oxo-degradable, photo-degradable or hydro-degradable plastic.

ECM Polyethylene Bags are made with virgin polyethylene that is combined with ECM, an additive made by ECM BioFilms that makes plastic biodegradable.

Features

• Biodegradable
  • Certified by ECM BioFilms to meet certain ASTM standards related to biodegradability (certificate available upon request)
  • Decomposes in natural anaerobic environments (landfill) in 9 months to 5 years depending on the environmental conditions
  • Decomposes in natural aerobic environments (compost) in approximately 12 months in commercial composting conditions using high heat processes
  • Does not start breaking down until it’s in constant contact with other materials that are biodegrading (i.e. on or buried in the ground)
• Recyclable – can be safely recycled with other polyethylene products
• Safe for packaging food
• Shelf life roughly the same as virgin poly

Options

• Virtually any size available
• Naturally clear in color with white and custom colors available
• Postal-Approved
• Many custom packaging types
• Printing up to 10 colors on 2 sides and a water-based ink option available

ECM Recycled Poly Bags are the same as Green Packaging Inc.’s ECM Poly Bags except they are made with recycled plastic which is not as clear and is not safe for packaging food.

Imaflex Compostable Plastic is composed of Ecoflex, BASF’s biodegradable petrochemical-based plastic,  with a mineral additive that makes it compostable as per ASTM D6400.

Features

• Compostable
  • Film decomposes into carbon dioxide, water and residual compost in 82 days under commercial composting conditions
  • Complies with ASTM D6400 for compostable articles.
  • Certified by both the Biodegradable Product Institute (BPI) and the United States Composting Council (USCC) and is approved for the Compostable Logo Program.
• Can be used for packaging food

Options

• Virtually any size available
• Translucent with white and custom colors available
• Many custom packaging types
• Printing up to 10 colors on 2 sides