Bioplastics: Plastics' Greener Cousin

A lipstick case it developed for Cargo Cosmetics won an honorable mention a few weeks ago when Dupont DD handed out its annual awards for packaging innovation.

No surprise: Plantic also won a Dupont award for chocolate packaging that it developed for Euro-retailer Marks & Spencer.

Bioplastics are made in different ways from starchy or sugary plants like potatoes, corn and sugar cane. Regardless of the method, the end result is a material that has the durability, flexibility and versatility of plastic, but with better "green cred."

Bioplastics have their faults -- and critics are happy to harp on them. But on balance they seem like a good idea. Unlike the case with many other green solutions, most of these issues have solutions.

The upside of these plastics is that they are made from renewable resources. As the Sustainable Business blog points out, this is a step backward of sorts to the early 20th century, when manufactured products were largely plant-based and petroleum was not yet a ubiquitous raw material.

Bioplastics generate fewer toxins and use less fossil fuel during the manufacturing process, can often be incinerated cleanly and will compost down to nothing under the right circumstances -- sometimes in home compost bins. Reportedly they even get a little melty if they're left out in the sun too long.

They can also often be reshaped into the same product over and over again, which can't be said of all plastics.

The downside: They are still industrial products, and are made from plants that are farmed industrially -- with all the fuel and chemical use that implies.