Solution: OK compost HOME

Solution: OK compost HOME

TÜV AUSTRIA INDIA PVT. LTD. – Nagpur/Maharashtra (Corporate Office)

Office No. 302, Plot no. 95, Renuka Complex, Friends Colony, Katol Road 440013 Nagpur/Maharashtra India

+91712-4033988

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TÜV AUSTRIA Certification Scheme: OK compost HOME

"This technical specification does only consider the home compostability and does not give any judgment about other end of life treatments (biodegradation in the soil or in water, suitability for recycling) or other environmental aspects (renewable resources, energy use, water use)."

 

As an environment-friendly company, you bring compostable and biodegradable products onto the market. But how do you gain credibility when there are so many players, both reliable and unreliable? TÜV AUSTRIA’s OK environment product verification marks are the only ones of their kind to offer a customized certification label for each biodegradation environment. These labels both consistently complement each and are extensible.

OK compost HOME

Owing to the comparatively smaller volume of waste involved, the temperature in a garden compost heap is clearly lower and less constant than in an industrial composting environment. This is why composting in the garden is a more difficult, slower-paced process.

TÜV AUSTRIA’s innovative answer to this challenge was to develop OK compost HOME to guarantee complete biodegradability in the light of specific requirements, even in your garden compost heap.

OK compost HOME is not based on a standard but is the basis for several standards!

  • European standard EN 13432 : “Packaging – Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting and biodegradation – Test scheme and evaluation criteria for the final acceptance of packaging”
  • European standard EN 14995 : “Plastics ― Evaluation of compostability ― Test scheme and specifications”
  • Adapted for home compostability

Compostability

Composting can reduce the volume of organic waste quite significantly, while the compost produced can be used for agricultural and horticultural purposes. About 50% of all domestic waste comprises organic material, a percentage that is set to grow in the future owing to the growing popularity of biodegradable products (packaging material, disposable cutlery and plates, …).

What is the difference between “OK compost INDUSTRIAL” and “OK compost HOME”?

Products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified are those that compost only in industrial composting facilities (at temperatures between 55 to 60°C), so products that are solely OK compost INDUSTRIAL-certified should not go into the garden compost.

Conversely, OK compost HOME refers to products that also compost at lower temperatures, so they can go into the compost heap in your garden at home, hence the title “HOME”.

Is there any difference between “biodegradable” and “compostable”?

People often get “biodegradable” and “compostable” mixed up but they do not mean the same thing. A biodegradable product may be broken down by microorganisms but this does not necessarily imply that the product can be converted into good quality compost.
Biodegradability and compostability rely heavily on the environment where the product is broken down. As each environment (compost, soil, water, …) has different temperatures and microorganisms, the speed of the biodegradation process may vary from one site to another.
For example, bioplastics which are biodegradable in an industrial composting plant (the most aggressive atmosphere regime) are not always biodegradable in water or soil, or even in a compost bin in the garden (owing to the lower temperatures).

What tests are required to qualify for an OK compost HOME certificate?

The European Norm about compostability of packaging (EN 13432) requires (besides a clear and detailed description of the product) 4 tests:
test on biodegradation (chemical break down of the polymer of fibers)
test on disintegration (physically falling apart of the product in small fragments)
test on ecotoxicity (test if the composted product does not exert any negative effect on plants)
test on heavy metals content

NOTE – Biodegradation, ecotoxicity and heavy metal content are characteristics of the material, whereas disintegration is a characteristic of the material and shape (final product).

Commercial or other declarations may not mislead the final consumer. More particularly the declarations concerning the use of a certified component or constituent may not give the end user the impression that the finished product is certified and complies with the OK compost HOME specifications when this is not true.

Application Form

You are looking for a specific file to download?

https://www.tuv-at.be/fileadmin/user_upload/docs/download-documents/CS/CS-OK02-EN_OK_compost_HOME.pdf

📣Start Your OK Compost Journey Today

If you are interested in learning more about OK Compost certification and how it can benefit your business, reach out to us at – okcompostindia@tuv-austria.in

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