We’ve been using Natureflex compostable packaging for a couple of years but we didn’t actually know if it was being composted by our customers so we sent out a very short survey in our newsletter and in the order completed emails that go out following a customer’s order being dispatched for a week. We received 30 responses, mostly in the first 2 days.
The results
We’re delighted that the results show that most of our customers are indeed composting our packaging. We also received some text responses which we’ve included in a table below. We’re glad to see that some councils are accepting compostable packaging in their food waste streams too.
Of those who are not composting the packaging, this is mostly because of a lack of available composting facilities. Three people responded that they have a council food waste collection but they do not take compostable packaging. Only one person responded that they did not trust the packaging to break down. Their free text comment in the table below shows that this is due to poor experience with compostable packaging in the past. This is completely understandable as there is no consistency across compostable packaging. We tested a lot out in our own compost heap and worm farm before choosing Natureflex. Many of the ones didn’t break down at all after months. When you buy compostable packaging it is often unclear whether it is suitable for home composting which is often at lower temperatures, or whether it requires commercial composting at higher temperature in more controlled facilities. As the collection of compostable packaging is still inconsistent across local authorities we think that only home compostable packaging is appropriate as this increases the possibility of it actually being composted compared to commercially compostable packaging.
Free text responses
We’ve included these because we found them interesting, and there were some good tips included on successful composting, including cutting up the packaging to smaller pieces and making sure there is plenty of moisture in the compost bin.
| Fine. But we had poor experience of other so called compost able packaging and just gave up on every one |
| I wish more businesses invested in compostable packaging, I mostly feel a hostage to the amount of plastic waste that’s forced on us as consumers. What you’re doing is very satisfying. |
| We have been buying coffee from you for years and the compostable packaging is what attracted us to your products. A huge bonus that the coffee is excellent! |
| I cut up the Natureflex packaging and add to my HotBin composter. It composts very quickly and easily. I have had other home compostable packaging from other suppliers that takes a lot longer to break down. So I have been very impressed with the Natureflex packaging. Thank you for being considerate in your packaging |
| Love your packaging – it actually breaks down, unlike some other allegedly “compostable at home” packaging we’ve encountered. |
| The fact your packaging is home compostable is one of the main reasons I looked into your company, as I was getting fed up with coffee packaging. The great customer service has been a bonus! |
| I generally find these compost ok. – as long as you add a bit of liquid to your compost. Certainly they break down far better than my attempts at composting “Two Farmers Crisps”. |
| Our council doesn’t packaging of any kind in the food waste collection – it’s not clear if compostable packaging would be fine (they probably so no to everything to make it super clear) |
| Love that you use compostable packaging, I think it’s a genuine high impact choice |
| We always cut it into smaller pieces when home composting |
| It’s great, composts fully! |
| I haven’t been using it long enough to know how well it actually breaks down in the compost bin so while I love it now, possible I wouldn’t in 6 months. |
| Very happy with recyclable nature of packaging. Will compost the compostable packaging when council allows. |
| I love that you use compostable packaging though I imagine it’s more expensive than alternatives. While I’m not able to compost it directly at the moment. I hope that wherever it ends up it’s able to break down more easily than plastic does. |
| I’ve had the compostable packaging split (or not sealed correctly) once in the time you’ve been sending them. |
| I really appreciate your efforts to reduce plastic waste |
Aside from uncertainty over compostability, there were two negatives of compostable packaging raised in the free text – cost and breakages. Home compostable packaging is indeed much more expensive than plastic or paper, each page is around 6 times more expensive than using plastic. This is a huge barrier to many small businesses to take up. Thankfully the packaging doesn’t break too often but both the packaging itself and the glue when it is heat-sealed are weaker. We overcome this by buying thicker grade bags and double-bagging which increases the packaging costs but reduces the food waste that comes with split packaging.
Conclusion
We were worried that not many people were able to compost the packaging as not everybody has the ability to compost at home and not all councils accept compostable packaging so this survey has really put our minds at rest that our packaging is being composted, and for many of you it is breaking down successfully. We’d like to see more businesses adopt home compostable packaging. It is worth the cost, and from a business point of view you can see that customers are choosing businesses specifically for plastic-free packaging that can be composted and so it could give a business advantage that can off-set the increased costs.
If you have any questions on home compostable packaging please do get in touch on coffee@roastinghouse.co.uk