What does Wellcompost® stand for?
Wellcompost® is the certification for materials that are 100% biobased, home compostable and biodegradable in any natural surrounding without producing any micro plastics. It stands for an overreaching approach to sustainability and combines all relevant standards under one label.
Biodegradable
Biodegradable means that a substance can be decomposed by biological processes (e.g. living microorganisms , bacteria or fungi). Ideally, the degrading organisms convert the product completely into water, CO2 and biomass.
Wellcompost® certified materials decompose in fresh water, marine environment and soil much faster as required by the relevant norms.
Biobased
Biobased that means a material is composed of biological products or renewable domestic agricultural materials, forestry materials or an intermediate feedstock.
Wellcompost® certified materials are 100% biobased and do not contain any petroleum-based content.
Home-compostable
Home compostable means that parts are breaking down into natural elements under the following conditions: Temperature 28°C, 90% biodegradation within a maximum of 12 months.
Wellcompost® certified materials break down much faster, some in less then 40 days. Furthermore they also break down into nutrient-rich products, which generates healthy soil. And since Wellcompost® guarantees for home-compostable products, these products will – of course – also decompose in an industrial composting or anaerobic digestion setting.
No microplastic
Primary microplastics are fragments of plastic less than 5 mm in length, while secondary microplastics arise from the degradation of larger plastic products through natural weathering processes in the environment.
Wellcompost® certified materials do not contain any petroleum-based content at all. Therefore no microplastic can be produced, neither during use nor during disposal.
Non toxic
Wellcompost® certification guarantees for non-toxic and REACH compliant materials with no negative impact to any environment since they do not contain heavy metals nor substances above 0.1% weight of a Substance of Very High Concern (SVHC).
No food competition
Wellcompost® certified materials do not compete with the production of food crops since the feedstock is sourced from side streams in agriculture or industry. Even though the materials are entirely made from biomass they do not need farmland.