Compostable Packaging Resources & Guides
Welcome to the Pure Compostables resource library — a working set of in-depth guides written for the people who actually procure, evaluate, and switch to compostable packaging. You’ll find detailed certification breakdowns (BPI, TUV, EN 13432, ASTM D6400 and beyond), step-by-step playbooks for transitioning a business away from conventional plastics, and product selection guides covering bag sizes, materials, and use cases. Every article is written from the perspective of a manufacturer with thirteen years of operating experience — not a marketing team. Use the categories below to navigate by topic, or browse the most recent guides directly. If your question isn’t answered here, our team is happy to help — start with our wholesale page or send us a note via the contact page.
-
Compostable Packaging for Casino and Resort Dining: A B2B Operator’s Guide
Casino and resort dining operations face specific compostable packaging challenges: multi-venue dining across casual through fine dining; high-volume buffet operations; 24-hour service patterns; sports betting and beverage service; and integration with broader resort operations. Building compostable programs requires understanding the operational profile.
-
School Composting Champions: Adopting a Cafeteria Bin
K-12 schools in the US generate roughly 530,000 tons of food waste annually, by USDA estimates. Most of it goes to landfill. School composting programs reduce this dramatically when implemented well, but require coordination across food service, custodial, administrative, and student stakeholders. The ‘composting champion’ model — student leaders or environmental club members taking ownership…
-
Compostable Coffins: A Centuries-Old Idea Returning to the Mainstream
For most of human history, the materials used to bury the dead were biological — wood, woven plant fiber, woolen shrouds. The 20th century introduced sealed metal caskets, concrete vaults, and embalming chemistry that resisted decomposition. The result was burial sites where bodies and materials persisted in geological time. The green burial movement of the…
-
What Is California SB 54 and How Does It Affect My Business?
California SB 54 — the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, signed in June 2022 — is one of the most ambitious extended producer responsibility laws in the world. The law affects any business selling packaged products in California, requires substantial reduction in single-use plastic packaging by 2032, and establishes a multi-billion-dollar fund…
-
12 Composting Misconceptions Industrial Composters Hear Daily
Industrial composting facility operators field the same questions repeatedly from customers, businesses, and regulators. The questions reveal consistent misconceptions about how composting actually works, what’s compostable, what facilities can process, and what to expect from compost programs. Many of these misconceptions sound plausible because they’re built on partial truths. Understanding the gap between popular belief…
-
A Buyer’s Guide to Compostable Foil Wraps
Aluminum foil is one of the more universally-used kitchen wrap materials. American households go through roughly 1.5 million tons of aluminum foil annually, with most of it ending in landfill despite being technically recyclable. Compostable alternatives have multiplied substantially over the past decade — beeswax wraps, plant-based vegan wraps, compostable parchment, cellulose-based films. Each fits…
-
How to Build a Tumbler Composter From a Plastic Drum
Commercial tumbler composters cost $150-300 for typical sizes. The same functionality can be built from a 55-gallon food-grade plastic drum and basic lumber for $40-100, in a weekend project. The DIY tumbler holds substantial volume, supports easy turning for fast composting, and adapts to specific household needs better than commercial alternatives. Here’s the working how-to…
-
A Compostable Weed Block Fabric for First-Year Gardens
First-year gardens have a specific weed problem. Soil that’s been lawn or fallow for years carries a substantial seed bank — thousands of weed seeds waiting for sunlight to germinate. Conventional landscape fabric (polypropylene woven plastic) suppresses these weeds but persists for decades, eventually shredding into microplastic. Compostable weed block options work just as well…
-
Valentine’s Day Chocolates in Compostable Wrappers
Americans spend roughly $2.5 billion on Valentine’s Day chocolates annually — over 58 million boxes of chocolate. The packaging that wraps these chocolates is one of the more wasteful corners of the holiday: foil wrappers, plastic boxes, cellophane, plastic film, and laminated cardboard, all designed for one moment of romantic gesture before going to landfill…
-
Independence Day Beach Picnic: Compostable Coolers and Containers
July 4th brings 70+ million Americans to beaches, parks, and outdoor gathering spaces. Beach picnics specifically face unique disposable challenges — wind blowing lightweight items into the surf, sand getting into food, sun softening conventional plastic, and the responsibility to leave the beach as clean as you found it. Compostable disposables work especially well in…
-
A Buyer’s Guide to Compostable Bags for Grocery Bagging
Single-use plastic shopping bags have been banned in 12+ US states and dozens of cities, with more bans coming. The replacement options include reusable bags (the gold standard), paper bags, and compostable plastic alternatives. For grocery stores and consumers using bags for individual shopping trips, compostable plastic bags occupy an interesting middle ground — they…
-
Stopping Fruit Flies in a Compost Caddy: 5 Tactics That Actually Work
Fruit flies are the single most common reason households abandon kitchen composting. The countertop bin that was supposed to be sustainability progress becomes a hatchery for tiny insects that swarm the kitchen. The good news: fruit fly problems are solvable through five specific tactics, none requiring fancy equipment. Most households can eliminate fruit fly issues…