Restaurants “remain completely dependent on plastics, particularly plastic wrap. The development of a food safe, ecologically responsible alternative has been slow going, but CNN reports that a new product made from soybean byproducts could potentially be the solution that the food industry has been waiting for.”
“Invented by William Chen, a professor of food science and technology at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, the new biodegradable food wrap is made from cellulose, a form of fiber that’s commonly used as a replacement for plastics in many disposable goods.”
“The major advantage of this new process, Chen says, is its potential scalability: bioplastics are typically far more expensive than good ol’ fashioned petrochemical plastic, and for an industry with notoriously razor-thin margins, high prices are enough of a barrier to prevent restaurants from switching out one of their most used items for a greener alternative. Because it’s derived from food waste, Chen says his soy-based wrap costs “almost nothing” to produce, and breaks down naturally within a month of being disposed of with regular kitchen trash.”
View the whole story here: https://thetakeout.com/soybean-based-byproduct-plastic-wrap-solve-for-food-was-1840147845