I was wondering about this recently and found a fantastic Treehugger write-up on the issue.

I highly recommend reading the article (including comments) if you want the full scope. (Also, they’re a bit biased, but the Insinkerator folks have a fairly solid video detailing what happens to food waste when it goes down a garbage disposal).

Anyway, here are the key take-aways:

1. Composting is always the preferred method to dispose of food waste. If you don’t have access to curbside composting or do not want to start & tend a compost pile in your backyard, I’d recommend trying a Naturemill.
   

   Naturemill Indoor Composter: Arul’s brother recently purchased one (good work Bhu!) and I have to say it was pretty awesome. It’s small, fits in your kitchen, and churns / oxidizes food scraps so that they heat up and break down quickly… replicating the conditions of an industrial composting facility (full post on this product coming soon).

2. If you’re unable to compost (and really most folks who can afford a Naturemill should be able to), then typically, putting food waste down a garbage disposal is your next best option. There are two main benefits from using a garbage disposal as opposed to just placing food waste in the trash, including: 1) energy savings (less trucks hauling trash to landfills) and 2) reduced food waste in landfills (some of the bio-solids that end up in Waste Water Treatment Plants, WWPTs, are turned into fertilizer).
3. Room for debate: It is important to note however that when food waste breaks down in an anaerobic environment (landfills & WWPTs are typically anaerobic environments), the food waste produces methane gas. There’s a stronger movement amongst landfills (relative to WWPTS) to re-capture that gas and prevent it from entering our atmosphere (where is it 21 times as potent as CO2). If you live in California, where methane re-capture is required for all new landfills, it may be better to have your food waste hauled to a landfill (though again – compost first).

We recently received a note from our sticker manufacturer Lightning Labels stating that they would be switching their eco-friendy Earthfirst PLA label material over to a new material called Natureflex – a wood pulp based substance manufactured from sustainably farmed trees. As a side note, cheers to Lightning Labels – these guys have great customer service and noting that we are an environmentally friendly (understatement ;-) ) company made sure to send us a specific note on the switch.

Most importantly though, it sounds like the right move from an environmental perspective. Lightning labels cites 3 main reasons for the switch, and I’ll add a 4th:

1. PLA is made from corn which takes away from the food supply for humans and farm animals, and has contributed to an increase in food prices for products with a corn component.
2. There are problems with the recycling of plastic containers with a PLA label – which means many such containers actually end up in landfills rather than being recycled.
3. Whole Foods is actively discouraging its suppliers from using PLA.
4. Many forms of PLA are only compostable in a commercial composting facility (not in your backyard).
   

You can read more at lightning labels blog about their reasons for switching, and you can also check out an article from Oregon Live regarding composting & recycling concerns with PLA.

For now, we have quite a few PLA-based stickers already eagerly waiting to be stuck. We did however want to share what feels like a smart move on the part of one of our suppliers and let ya’ll know that we’ll be keeping a close eye on the most environmentally responsible way to manufacture Viv stickers.