There has been much talk about the use of corn and other bio-materials as a way to use fewer non-recyclable and non-compostable resources to meet the needs of industries such as shipping and food containers. However, there are several reasons why this might not be such a good idea.
Consider the true energy cost in producing a corn-plastic spoon or paper take away container. In the case of the former, cheap oil is used to generate the fertilizer and pesticides that grow such a crop. Moreover, should such products make it into the usual waste stream, they will contribute to the bulk of landfill waste as well as the methane problem that is poorly addressed by methane recovery programs.
From a purely practical standpoint, when these materials accidentally get tossed into the plastic recycling stream, even a single corn-spoon can foul up and entire batch of plastic, making it useless and sending the whole lot to the landfill.
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