Comments on: A Corny Idea

By: R. Duane Officer

R. Duane Officer — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:58:49 +0000

In the mid-90’s, my 5 minute commute to work took me through 2 cornfields. The second year, the entire crop was left to rot, on the stalk, until the following planting season. Perhaps the corn went bad for some reason. Maybe some government subsidy made it more lucrative to not harverst? Either way, I found it offensively wasteful and cringe to imagine how often this occurs!

[I]Responsible[/I] agricultural techniques, in general, are something which I whole-heartedly endorse. Again, other starchy crops could ([I]and perhaps should[/I]) be used ([I]at least in part[/I]) but unless any crop is rotten to the point of being unusable as such, PLA would offer a much more efficient alternative to plowing under, summarily.

ENSO ([I]Japanese for “circle”[/I]) bottles certainly seem like they could be some improvement to the status quo but they are still, at heart, PET. From what I’ve read, the inclusion of microbe-friendly additives changes nothing in the essential manufacturing process; including energy consumption or that pesky, primal component. Cradle to grave, PLA is still, by and large, superior, as I see it.

By: Linda

Linda — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:42:51 +0000

It seems like Wall-Mart thinks the same that corn plastic or PLA is a better way to go. The company announced it will be using 114 million containers made out of corn. More info can be found at http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/10/walmart_to_use.php

It sure does like something that is worth looking at.

By: Max

Max — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 16:54:43 +0000

PLA would be a much better idea if it wasn’t made from corn. Corn should be a food crop not used to make ethanol and plastic. Countries that have relied on our grain imports in the past are now clear cutting their forests to grow corn. Also, genetically modified corn is being used to make ethanol and plastic. The problem with GM corn is that its pollen is wind born and is infecting non genetically modified crops. Corn is a horrible idea…increases the use of pesticides, raises food prices, etc. Making PLA from a non food source such as algae is something I could support; let’s use the land we are using to make fuel and plastic for the production of food.
Max
http://www.ensobottles.com