Received your online order in a minliving compostable mailer? Guess what, this mailer is not your typical poly mailer. This one doesn't pollute the seas and is 100% eco-friendly! minliving compostable mailers are made from compostable material and can be added to your home compost. Want to learn more? Find out how to compost your compostable mailers in this short article.
What are Compostable Mailers?
In our previous article, "What makes a good compostable mailer?", compostable mailers are defined as a sustainable packaging alternative to traditional plastic mailers. They are made from a combination of compostable plant material such as corn and compostable plastic called poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) or better known as PBAT. PBAT creates a tough but flexible material that allows the packaging to compost and biodegrades faster into natural, non-toxic elements that nourish the soil. It is 100% compostable which means it can degrade in a home compost bin or in an industrial compost.
Why Compostable Mailers?
Compostable mailers are a sustainable packaging option that is safer and gentler for the environment. Compostable packaging such as minliving compostable mailers turns into humus-like material together with other organic matter. Compost is a great material for garden soil as this makes the soil easier to work and plant. In addition, it can also help improve plant growth and health. Unlike traditional plastic mailers that take a hundred years to break down, compostable mailers compost within 4-8 months in a home compost, 3 months in an industrial composting facility, and 2 years in a landfill. By switching to a sustainable packaging solution such as compostable mailers, we can help reduce plastic pollution in our own little way.
How to compost your compostable mailers?
What is great about compostable mailers is that you wouldn't wonder where it ends up since you can see it break down in your backyard compost. To start home composting, put a good ratio of brown materials and green materials in a compost bin. Brown materials are materials that are high in carbon such as dead leaves, plants, shredded cardboard, wheat straw, wood chips, and sawdust. Compostable mailers can fit in this category. Green materials, on the other hand, are materials high in nitrogen such as coffee grounds, grass clippings, food scraps, and most kitchen waste. A good ratio of brown materials and green materials allows for a successful compost.
minliving.com gives us 5 easy steps to compost compostable mailers:
"First remove any labels or tape on minliving compostable mailers. Make sure there are no adhesive strips, labels, or tape left on the mailer. Second, cut them into strips so that they would compost faster. Next, place it into your compost bins together with your brown materials and eventually add green materials while following the 3:1 ratio. After putting it together, turn your compost bin from time to time to aerate it. This process of allowing air to come helps in breaking down the compost faster."
The Difference between Biodegradable Packaging and Compostable Packaging
To be honest, both are great sustainable alternatives to plastic packaging. The main differences are the process of breaking down and what it does for the soil. In our previous article, "What is the difference between compostable and biodegradable?", we discussed the basic elements of these two terms that are commonly used in packaging labels. Three main points that differentiate the two are:
Biodegradable materials break down through natural processes while compostable materials need human intervention
Compostable materials are beneficial to the soil while some biodegradable materials sometimes leave toxic waste
Compostable materials are beneficial to the soil
As explained in our previous article, biodegration of biodegradable materials naturally degrade back into their simple components such as biomass, carbon dioxide, and water without human intervention. The material breaks down and simply degrades in the environment through time. Compostable materials, on the other hand, need specific conditions to compost but degrades much faster than biodegradable products due to the controlled environment in a home compost and an industrial composting facility. Lastly, and most importantly, compostable materials are beneficial to the soil as it leaves a humus-like material which assists plants in strengthening their immune system. Only organic elements degrade in the environment and do not leave toxic waste.
Three ways to dispose of minliving compostable mailers
minliving Compostable Mailers are 100% made from compostable materials that have been tried in tested to compost in a home compost bin and an industrial compost. Three simple ways to dispose of our compostable mailer is to:
Look for a composter through www.findacomposter.com
Compost at home using a compost bin (the most convenient way which can also nourish the soil in your garden)
Dispose of our compostable mailer as though they are normal waste (least recommended but it will still compost in a landfill)
Receiving a compostable mailer from your favorite brand means that they care for you, the future, and the environment too. By supporting eco-conscious brands, it is a testament to how we as consumers, can do our part in creating a better future for us and future generations. Whether or not you practice composting or is a new concept in your home, becoming aware of these sustainable packaging choices such as compostable mailers allows us to have a chance in conserving mother earth.