Potato Pak Biodegradable Plates Product Review

Potato Pak offers a wide range of 100% biodegradable plates and bowls made from potato starch. The products are non-toxic and of course, very environmentally friendly. The current available products range from ‘dinner-sized’ plates, to small bowls and even ‘take-away style’ punnets with secure lids.

The green-credentials of these products look to be fantastic. As mentioned above, being 100% biodegradable means that these products will quickly break down in your compost heap or even a worm farm. The packaging that the products arrived in is known as pop starch, a starch based cushioning product which eliminates the need for polystyrene filling in the package. I dropped one of these starch balls in some water and it dissolved away almost instantly. The product did, however, come with minimal plastic wrap. I assume this is out of necessity as the product will need to be kept secure to prevent damage during transport.

According to the information sheet you can even eat the plate if you feel the inclination, although this isn’t recommended. I ran a taste test on one of the plates and while edible, there isn’t really much of a taste beyond a papery/cardboard one!

As you can see in the photos, most of the products come in a beige-cream colour, although coloured varieties are also available. The coloured plates and bowls provide an excellent alternative to their polystyrene counterparts used in events such as birthday parties for kids.

Potato Pak also offer wooden utensils to go with the plates and bowls. These are a good, eco-friendly alternative to the usual plastic forks, spoons and knives. As their website correctly mentions, plastic products require oil during their manufacturing, which is not only environmentally unfriendly, but a limited, non-renewable resource as well. The wooden utensils are also a lot stronger than your typical plastic one.

The plates and bowls are a bit thicker than polystyrene plates and bowls which means that the amount of heat transferred is reduced. This means you can hold onto a plateful of hot food a lot easier than you can do with a polystyrene plate. Currently, the products are not capable of holding hot liquids, such as coffees and soups but Potato Pak does mention that they are conducting research into making a product that can handle hot liquids. If this is achieved then they will be able to branch out into replacing things like the typical polystyrene coffee cup with a green alternative.

The plates and bowls are surprisingly durable. Compared to the typical paper plate option, these items are incredibly strong and sturdy. One thing we did notice though, if there is a small split on the sides of a plate or bowl, you’ll need treat it with a bit more care as they can split quickly from there. We tested how much weight we could load the plate (no damage) with before it broke. Holding the plate on one end, we loaded 600 grams of apples on the opposite end and the plate held up perfectly. Of course in reality you’ll most likely be holding the plate in the middle, but the test shows how strong these items really are.

Potato Pak products are really suited to ‘greening’ the birthday party, barbecue, outdoor social function type markets. Due to their short life-span it’s not very realistic to use around the home for everyday use. By providing an environmentally friendly alternative to temporary cutlery, Potato Pak products are helping to reach zero-waste targets which are landfills are currently trying to achieve.

All in all we were really impressed with the products offered by Potato Pak. I am also looking at the potential benefits of the light-weight products for use in tramping (hiking) trips. With new products on the horizon the product range looks to become even more practical and usable in more of our everyday cutlery and utensil needs.

For more information you can visit their website on www.potatoplates.com, and read more product reviews in our Review & Shop section.

Greenwoods Soft and Safe Product Review

Greenwoods Soft and Safe is a versatile cleaning product that is not only affordable but environmentally friendly as well. The list of ways you can use Soft and Safe is extensive, from fabric softening to the cleaning of greasy kitchen surfaces to being an additive in dish washing and even cleaning your car! The actual product is described as ‘washing soda crystals’ that are composed of sodium carbonate and water. The crystals can be dissolved in both cold and hot water which adds to its impressive versatility.

The green credentials of Soft and Safe look to be good. It’s 100% biodegradable, the container is recyclable and it is sold in a large 1kg quantity, considering that the weight of the crystals are minimal. It’s also a locally (Palmerston, Otago, New Zealand) produced product which makes it a fantastic buy for Kiwi’s, reducing freighting (and carbon emissions) and helping to support the local economy.

Soft and Safe performed well in all our testing. Obviously the crystals dissolve better in hot water than in cold, and both did require a little stirring. After a few seconds the crystals had completely disappeared in the hot water while a few remained in the cold water.

The cleaning power of Soft and Safe is fantastic. I tried it out in bathroom cleaning and included it in a load of dishes and found that it performed well in both of these areas. Of course with such a large list of potential uses I couldn’t try out everything, in fact, Greenwoods even offers to provide you with more suggestions for uses of their products.

The quantities required are consistent for their uses and comparable to that of other products, such as using a handful of Soft and Safe in your laundry load, this being roughly similar to the laundry powder cup.

Greenwoods Soft and Safe is available in most New Zealand Supermarkets and is very affordable. We always keep a bottle in the household and personally think it’s a fantastic product.

Private Firework Displays To Be Banned?

Following a number of years of firework-related disasters the New Zealand Government will be looking to revise their stance on whether or not private displays will be permitted. Every Guy Fawkes fire fighters and fire fighting resources are stretched beyond capacity due to consistent irresponsible usage. Not only are numerous casualties reported every year, but many bush fires break out all over the country. The RSPCA has been lobbying against private firework sales, expressing concern at the way animals fearfully respond to the noise and lights.

So, the future of private fireworks, in New Zealand at least, does not look fantastic. This year was geared up to be a trial period with the ultimatum, behave or else. As we have seen in the news, there have still been incidents and these could weigh in the favour of a ban, with only council operated displays being allowed.

Personally I think it’s about time a ban comes into effect. The number of fires that have ravaged our native bush is a price far too high to pay, think of all that air pollution as well! After this years accident (during a professional event) involving three young children receiving burn injuries, one major super market chain has decided to cease selling fireworks and others say they may follow the lead.

Do you think it’s time for a change or do we stick with tradition?

Going Green - Fact, Fad or Fiction?

“Going green” is certainly something many of us are attempting and almost all will have heard about. Environmentally related issues seem to dominate media attention and scientific study. A lot of people are certainly caught up in eco fever, finding interesting methods to live and thrive with as little perceived environmental impact as possible.

Whilst considering all the hype, I do wonder if it is a fleeting fad that will soon lose its current gusto or are we really experiencing the beginnings of a dramatic shift in our society that will pave the way of life for generations to come. I guess the real answer is that only time will tell, however it is an interesting point to consider nevertheless.

It is possible that following an eco-friendly lifestyle is nothing more than a fleeting fad for the majority of society. If this is so, then it will only be a matter of time before it loses popularity and another lifestyle will be favoured. This would be highly devastating to the health of the planet and so perhaps could not be sustained for long.

The simple fact that the resource base to sustain our current global societal structure is either not great enough, or not managed efficiently enough, is cause for an inevitable shift in our lifestyle. For this reason, I think that at least some changes are necessary no matter which is the case.

The more optimistic and likely alternative is that our society is setting in for a “green-revolution” in which we will adapt our lifestyle with minor and/or major changes and advances in environmental friendly technology, to live with a smaller environmental impact.

Perhaps we really are setting in motion the next big human social evolution, just like that which was seen with the industrial revolution and all the consequences that ensued, and what an exciting thought that is!