Delayed DEFRA Response a Concern

Vancouver, Canada (Aug 30, 2011) – The DEFRA report on oxo-biodegradable (OBD) plastics, published in 2010, presented an unflattering portrait of OBD technology and attacked many of the core benefits associated with OBD plastics. This was of particular concern to EPI Environmental Products Inc. (EPI) because the report was commissioned by a UK government body, whose opinion is normally respected. EPI considered this to be a matter of high importance and undertook to examine the report and how it came to be.

A critical review of the report conducted by EPI’s International Scientific Advisory Board (ISAB) suggested severe deficiencies, both in the authors’ review of available information and in the reasoning behind their conclusions. These conclusions were based on an inadequate review of the scientific literature and on erroneous assumptions. It was also apparent that Bioplastics proponents had guided the authors and the report suffered by being excessively influenced by the opinions of the Bioplastics industry.

The use of composting standards as biodegradation specifications is a tactic that is commonly used by the Bioplastics industry to attack OBD technology. That this approach was selected by the DEFRA report’s authors for assessing biodegradation of OBD plastics reflected the fact that the authors have no background or experience in polymer degradation or biodegradation and relied too heavily on guidance from outside sources. The authors were ill-equipped to take on such a project and were certainly not well qualified to draw conclusions regarding degradation and biodegradation, based on the limited scientific literature review that they conducted.

Another issue was that the DEFRA authors only briefly consulted with OBD stakeholders during the very early stages of their review, and there was no follow-up consultation to clarify misconceptions or to request additional information. This is in stark contrast to other similar reports that have been prepared on DEFRA’s behalf, where there has been extensive consultation with stakeholders.

EPI quickly voiced its condemnation of the report’s conclusions, which was echoed by other companies in the OBD industry. With the British Plastics Federation acting as an intermediary, DEFRA agreed to listen to the OBD industry response to the DEFRA report findings.  Chaired by the BPF, a group of industry representatives prepared a rebuttal document, which includes a complete review of current OBD technology. This document was presented to DEFRA for review on behalf of the OBD industry in May 2011 and will be made public once DEFRA has responded to it. EPI’s representative on this group was Prof. Norman Billingham, a long standing and esteemed member of EPI’s International Scientific Advisory Board.

The amount of information collected for this document clearly shows that there is a vast body of scientific evidence substantiating the performance of OBD technology which the DEFRA authors did not access or take into account. This information refutes the conclusions of the DEFRA report and validates the claims of the OBD stakeholders with regards to the benefits of OBD plastics.

About EPI Environmental Products Inc.:
Established in 1991 in Canada, EPI Environmental Products Inc. (EPI) with its UK subsidiary EPI (Europe) Ltd. has become a world leader in the fight against plastic waste. EPI licenses proprietary technology that causes plastic to degrade. Plastic bags, plastic film, plastic packaging and other single-use plastics can remain in the environment for decades. When these products are manufactured using EPI’s additives, they will degrade and subsequently biodegrade when discarded in soil, in the presence of microorganisms, moisture, and oxygen.

DEFRA Oxo Report Conclusions Miss the Mark

Vancouver, Canada (Aug 30, 2011) – With recent media headlines showing the impact of the 2010 UK Government DEFRA report on oxo-biodegradable plastics (OBP), the responsibility falls on EPI Environmental Products Inc., as the industry pioneer and leader, to bring to light the deficiencies of the report and to highlight the OBP industry response. DEFRA commissioned the review of OBP technology, but unfortunately the resulting report was neither thorough nor accurate in its findings, and this has perpetuated misconceptions about OBP technology that have tainted perceptions of the associated environmental benefits.

The DEFRA report, prepared by a group at Loughborough University, UK was intended to be a complete review of OBP technology. Unfortunately, the expertise of the authors with regards to plastics degradation and biodegradation was certainly questionable, and the conclusions drawn were based on gross misconceptions. For example, the authors mistakenly used compostability as the key criterion for determining biodegradability, and failed to acknowledge the vast amount of scientific literature supporting OBP biodegradation. This may have resulted from the fact that key reviewers of the report were proponents of the Bioplastic industry, who view OBP as their chief competition.

The level of stakeholder input in preparation of the report was unusually low, and the OBP industry was not allowed the time to rebut the findings or provide additional information. This was in stark contrast to other similar DEFRA projects, where there has been extensive stakeholder involvement.

The OBP industry led by one of EPI’s eminent scientists, prepared an extensive report which contained a complete review of the peer-reviewed academic literature relating to OBP, along with industry data that together provided a thorough substantiation of OBP performance. All aspects of OBP technology were discussed and validated, including degradation, biodegradation, and non-ecotoxicity. In May 2011, the British Plastics Federation presented the OBP industry response to DEFRA for review and is patiently waiting for their comments.

The OBP industry response refutes all the misconceptions and misinformation contained in the DEFRA report. Those that have any questions about OBP technology are encouraged to review the industry response, which will be made public as soon as DEFRA has responded to it.

About EPI Environmental Products Inc.:
Established in 1991 in Canada, EPI Environmental Products Inc. (EPI) with its UK subsidiary EPI (Europe) Ltd. has become a world leader in the fight against plastic waste. EPI licenses proprietary technology that causes plastic to degrade. Plastic bags, plastic film, plastic packaging and other single-use plastics can remain in the environment for decades. When these products are manufactured using EPI’s additives, they will degrade and subsequently biodegrade when discarded in soil, in the presence of microorganisms, moisture, and oxygen.

Tesco’s move to ditch bio bags draws additive fire

Try our TDPA bag and see for yourself!

At EPI we are committed to standing by our oxo-biodegradable technology.
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Email info@epi-global.com with your name and full address and we will send you a free sample of an EPI oxo-biodegradable plastic garbage bag.
Limit one per household, offer expires Sep 19, 2011.

Tesco Decision on Oxo Doesn’t Add Up

Vancouver, Canada (August 18, 2011) – EPI Environmental Products Inc. is confounded by Tesco statements regarding discontinuing the use of oxo-biodegradable plastic (OBP) bags because OBP additive made Tesco bags weaker.  The weakness of the Tesco bags was most certainly not a result of using OBP additives.  EPI supplied additives for Tesco bags for several years and is aware that problems with weak bags were not observed until Tesco implemented cost-cutting measures such as film thickness reduction and increase in fillers and recycled content.  EPI’s OBP additives are used worldwide in carrier bags without any problems related to weakening of bags.