A bit of Plastic History!
A long time ago, humans invented a malleable, pliable, utterly unique substance called plastic. Once commercially derived from fossil fuels, the plastic revolution was born. In the early 20th century, plastics increasingly become the go-to for all product development. By the 1920’s, nearly every house in the developed world was relying on plastic products for everyday use. Plastic has come a long way since those early petrochemical plastic days. Today, the world is starting to wake up to the possibilities of bioplastics, specifically hemp plastic.
Never heard of hemp plastic? You are not alone. It’s a relatively new phenomenon and joins other renewable sources of plastic such as corn, flaxseed, and wood cellulose. Interestingly, the concept of hemp plastic has been around for more than half a century. Only recently has it caught on. Didn’t you know that Henry Ford built a hemp plastic car in the 1940s?
Bioplastic Statistics
Despite how often you might come across a corn plastic cup or a hemp piece of disposable cutlery, the reality is bioplastics still only make up a fraction of the market. According to the most recent statistics, only one percent of global plastic production is organic. That means only one percent of 320 million tons produced annually.
Even that statistic is a bit misleading, because of the 2.05 million tones produced annually, less than 50 percent of those are biodegradable. Some are only bio-based. Biobased plastics have less environmental impact during production but are not recyclable, nor biodegradable. Asia is by far the largest producer of all bioplastics, with 56 percent of the global output. The United States is second to last regarding production; it has a long way to the top.
Not surprisingly, the most significant driver of bioplastics is the demand for environmentally friendly packaging options. The number of plastic bags floating around the ocean has got even non-environmentalists nervous. The second largest application in 2017 for bioplastics is for textiles, followed closely by uses in the automotive industry and consumer goods.
Bioplastics, like hemp plastic, are good for the environment in many different ways. They obviously take far less time to break down in the environment. They also produce 30 to 80 percent fewer emissions than their fossil fuel cousins. Depending on type of production, hemp plastics are recyclable, biodegradable, and free of toxins.
