Eco-Products launches compostable line to slash foodservice contamination

08 Mar 2024 --- Novolex brand Eco-Products has marketed a new compostable product line of cups, lids, containers and cutlery named Veridian. The move aims to ease composting for consumers, composters and the foodservice value chain. 

Contamination from non-compostable products is the biggest challenge facing composters, impacting the growth of the composting infrastructure designed to process food scraps and packaging together. As a result, more food is sent to landfills, contributing to climate change. 

All items in the Veridian line feature the word “Compostable,” while displaying the BPI Certification Mark. They each include green or brown identification elements — like tinting and striping — that further help distinguish them from their non-compostable counterparts. 

“Consistent on-item labeling is essential to giving foodservice operators, their customers and composters the ability to quickly and easily identify products as compostable,” says Eco-Products’ marketing director Wendell Simonson.

Compliant with US rules 
The Veridian line contains over 50 items across various categories, including cold cups and lids, hot cups and lids, clamshells, deli containers, portion cups, salad bowls and cutlery. 

All items are designed to meet new US labeling rules in Washington state and Colorado that require the use of the word “Compostable,” a third-party certification mark, and the combination of color and design elements that vary by state. 

The laws were created to address contamination challenges and make compostable foodservice products more readily and easily identifiable. In October, Eco-Products launched the “CIRC” Program — Controls Intended to Remove Contamination — an open-source, systems approach to contamination mitigation for the foodservice industry. 

“Composters have an extremely limited ability to deal with contamination once it gets to their facilities,” Simonson told Packaging Insights. “That means we need to do everything possible to keep non-compostable products out of organic streams, and consistent on-item labeling is a foundational piece of that effort.”

Edited by Natalie Schwertheim