Mondi Group has introduced into the European market new and innovative packaging named Terra Bag.Terra Bag is the world’s first biodegradable industrial bag. It consists of a paper bag (one or more plies) with a biodegradable film for humidity protection. The entire bag is biodegradable and optimised for industrial composting, Terra Bag is certified according to EN 13432, a harmonised European standard that defines the “Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting and biodegradation”. A revolutionary approach for sustainable waste management of industrial bags.
The biodegradable film used for Terra Bag is partly made from corn. Joined together with sack kraft paper, also made from renewable resources and biodegradable, these components ideally complement the sustainable industrial packaging solution: Terra Bag. The entire bag can be composted within 12 weeks in an industrial composting facility after usage. During this process the bag is broken down by micro-organisms finally resulting in humus, suitable for agriculture or gardening.
In line with the European Directive for Waste Management, which favours recycling, reusage and composting, Terra Bag is transformed into valuable humus through the industrial composting process, and used again for enriching soil. In order to fully benefit from this cycle Terra Bag needs to be integrated into the waste management system for biodegradable waste already in place in many countries. Should a system need to be set up at a construction site, the setup cost of such a system is estimated at only half of the disposal cost without such waste separation. Terra Bag is easily recognisable as compostable as it is clearly labeled for this purpose.
The use of renewable raw materials in the production of paper and bioplastics helps slow down the depletion of non-renewable resources and reduces waste production and environmental pollution. Life-cycle analyses of bioplastics show that CO2 emissions can be up to 20% lower than those for commodity polymers (Source: europeanbioplastics.org), when properly disposed of in industrial composting facilities.
Compared with pure paper bags Terra Bag provides enhanced product protection; the biofilm presenting a moisture protection which improves the shelf-life of the filling good. The barrier function is however lower than HDPE film.
Terra Bag has been optimised thanks to various tests carried out by our application engineers at the Bag Application Centre (BAC) and directly at customers’ sites. The bag solution presents no constraints in filling speed. Therefore, fillers do not need to settle for a compromise but can enjoy their usual production speed while reducing the environmental impact of their product packaging.
Terra Bag was developed in close collaboration with Ciments Calcia (Italcementi Group), Barbier and Limagrain. The composting tests were carried out by the independent organisation Organic Waste Systems
