New Administrator for U.S. Compostable Product Certification Program

12 January 2012

Global independent public health organisation NSF International has been named the new administrator of the Biodegradable Products Institute's (BPI) Certified Compostable program.

Founded in 1999, the BPI is a New York based organisation involving people and companies that produce, use or recover compostable products. It said that it aims to promote the growth of biodegradable plastics through education, use of scientifically-based standards and cooperative efforts with organisations in Europe and Asia.

BPI said that it developed the Certified Compostable program for plastics in order to apply science based test methods, developed by the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM), to verify that a material will compost in a municipal or commercial facility, leaving no toxic or lingering plastic.

NSF International writes standards and certifies products for food, water and consumer goods to protect human health and the environment, and will administer the Certified Compostable program through its NSF Sustainability division, which provides testing and verification of environmental claims for consumer products, green chemicals, sustainable furnishing and building materials such as carpet, flooring and fabrics.

Certified compostable items range from bags and foodservice items to packaging materials, widely distributed consumer products and even wax and shellac coatings. BPI said that its Compostable Logo identifies products that have been independently tested and verified to biodegrade and compost quickly, safely and completely in municipal and commercial composting operations.

Steven A. Mojo, BPI executive director explained: "As more consumer goods companies recognise the importance and value of composting, and the importance of responsible marketing claims about biodegradability and compostability, we anticipate even more growth in the years ahead."

The institute claimed that the product testing has been designed to mimic what takes place in a typical municipal or commercial composting system. To pass these ASTM tests, a product must:

According to BPI, NSF earned accreditation in 2010 to provide the testing portion of its program. Now as the administrator, NSF Sustainability will provide all aspects of the certification process from the initial application, product reviews, testing, and verifying compliance to the BPI program requirements.

Actual licensing for use of the Compostable Logo will remain BPI's responsibility.


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