Eat Potatoes with Potatoes – Use Biodegradable Tater Ware

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Every day, we are faced with the question of whether it is greener to serve meals on reusable dishes and waste water to wash them with, or contribute to the landfill problem by using paper plates and plastic utensils.   Biodegradable Food Service Products (abbreviated BDFS) has a solution to this dilemma by using the humble potato to manufacture a whole line of food service products that include clam shell take-out trays, “silver”ware, plates, cups with lids, and deli trays.

Tater Ware is heat stable to 375 degrees, meets FDA requirements for direct food contact, freezer safe, microwarmable, and suitable for both hot and cold foods.

The companies “secret sauce” appears to be a novel process for polymerizing plant starch.  Their products are both biodegradable AND compostable, which is a double benefit.

My daughter’s school, ISTP in Palo Alto, CA  is going green by switching to Tater Ware for their lunch services.  If everyone switched to biodegradable products, it would make a huge difference in our world!

Photo Credit: www.wikipedia.com

12 thoughts on “Eat Potatoes with Potatoes – Use Biodegradable Tater Ware”

  1. Tranter Graphics Inc which we wrote about in Earth Day Ideas: Event Planning – http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/03/02/earthday-ideas-event-planning/ – carries a range of biodegradable (corn plastics and potato starches) and recyclable utensils, cups, plates and napkins.

    Tranter Graphics products are geared toward the mass market via the promotional products industry – think green a cafe, or baseball park concession stand, etc., going green. They don’t sell retail to my knowledge.

  2. Tranter Graphics Inc which we wrote about in Earth Day Ideas: Event Planning – http://ecopreneurist.com/2009/03/02/earthday-ideas-event-planning/ – carries a range of biodegradable (corn plastics and potato starches) and recyclable utensils, cups, plates and napkins.

    Tranter Graphics products are geared toward the mass market via the promotional products industry – think green a cafe, or baseball park concession stand, etc., going green. They don’t sell retail to my knowledge.

  3. What about the fact that using food to manufacture other commodities (fuel, disposable food containers… etc)increases food prices, therefore making it unaffordable for some…? May not affect green yuppies as much as it affects the poor and developing countries. Just something to keep in mind…

  4. What about the fact that using food to manufacture other commodities (fuel, disposable food containers… etc)increases food prices, therefore making it unaffordable for some…? May not affect green yuppies as much as it affects the poor and developing countries. Just something to keep in mind…

  5. Hi Dear,
    Our factory produces biodegradable cutlery : PSM cutlery , PLA cutlery . Factory has HACCP, products have many certificates approved . USA , Canada , Australia and UK are our main markets . If U are interested in, please let me know .

    Suyuan Bio-products Co.,Ltd.
    [email protected]

  6. Hi Dear,
    Our factory produces biodegradable cutlery : PSM cutlery , PLA cutlery . Factory has HACCP, products have many certificates approved . USA , Canada , Australia and UK are our main markets . If U are interested in, please let me know .

    Suyuan Bio-products Co.,Ltd.
    [email protected]

  7. The potatoes that they use aren’t used for food. They are very low grade potatoes that won’t be used for anything else.

    However the real problem lies in that

    a)It gets landfilled like trash because it can’t be recycled since it is mixed with other plastics and heavy metals. Landfills are designed to be stable and NOT to let things break down.

    b)Shipping it from china on a diesel boat increases carbon footprint.

    c)Regular plasticware, made from PET, actually is recyclable and we have infrastructure in place to do it.

    So actually they are increasing the carbon footprint, creating a product that isn’t getting recycled when it normally is, and putting more trash in landfills. They are actually ruining the planet, not helping it.

  8. The potatoes that they use aren’t used for food. They are very low grade potatoes that won’t be used for anything else.

    However the real problem lies in that

    a)It gets landfilled like trash because it can’t be recycled since it is mixed with other plastics and heavy metals. Landfills are designed to be stable and NOT to let things break down.

    b)Shipping it from china on a diesel boat increases carbon footprint.

    c)Regular plasticware, made from PET, actually is recyclable and we have infrastructure in place to do it.

    So actually they are increasing the carbon footprint, creating a product that isn’t getting recycled when it normally is, and putting more trash in landfills. They are actually ruining the planet, not helping it.

  9. I read somewhere that Tater Ware is made from inedible potato waste, which is a step in the right direction. If you absolutely must use disposable dinnerware, this biodegradable stuff is in the ballpark of reason. I’m now chewing part of a Tater Ware fork in my mouth and it appears to be dissolving down very gradually.

    However, I don’t see how it or any other buy it/throw it/recycle it daydream can ever compete ecologically or economically to the few ounces of water and soap, and the few feet of travel, it takes to wash a dish. (Anyone who claims that hand-washing dishes takes too much water needs to learn how to wash dishes properly.)

    I’m not sure I care if you’re having a picnic — bring the lightweight plastic plates and live with the fact that you’ll carry a stack of dirty dishes home to wash.

  10. I read somewhere that Tater Ware is made from inedible potato waste, which is a step in the right direction. If you absolutely must use disposable dinnerware, this biodegradable stuff is in the ballpark of reason. I’m now chewing part of a Tater Ware fork in my mouth and it appears to be dissolving down very gradually.

    However, I don’t see how it or any other buy it/throw it/recycle it daydream can ever compete ecologically or economically to the few ounces of water and soap, and the few feet of travel, it takes to wash a dish. (Anyone who claims that hand-washing dishes takes too much water needs to learn how to wash dishes properly.)

    I’m not sure I care if you’re having a picnic — bring the lightweight plastic plates and live with the fact that you’ll carry a stack of dirty dishes home to wash.

  11. Biodegradable plastic and packaging is a modern necessity for our ever-endangered environment.
    Now PLA has been used to line the indoors of Paper Cups in place of the oil based lining additional usually used, create Plastic Cups, Plates, Carrier Bags, Food Packaging and even Nappies.
    Eco Pure is our proprietary blend of organic materials that does not modify the base resin to which it is added.

    Thanks a lot for your information

  12. Biodegradable plastic and packaging is a modern necessity for our ever-endangered environment.
    Now PLA has been used to line the indoors of Paper Cups in place of the oil based lining additional usually used, create Plastic Cups, Plates, Carrier Bags, Food Packaging and even Nappies.
    Eco Pure is our proprietary blend of organic materials that does not modify the base resin to which it is added.

    Thanks a lot for your information

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