March 2022 - Refill Ambassadors

Whether a material is compostable is related to its chemical structure. Thus, there are biobased plastics that are compostable, biobased plastics that are not, and also non-biobased (fossil fuel based) plastics that are compostable. Very confusing! In this blog we do our best to explain biodegradable and compostable plastics.

BIODEGRADABLE PLASTICS

A plastic is biodegradable if it can be converted into water, methane and CO2 in nature. This is done with the help of enzymes.

The label biodegradable can be misleading. It does not mean we can bury the packaging our garden compost heap and it will vanish naturally. The biodegradation of a plastic in nature can take decades, if not centuries. Some type of bioplastics break down into microplastics and can often only be composed industrially.

COMPOSTABLE PLASTICS

Certified compostable plastics decompose fast enough with the current method of composting in the Netherlands. This means no residues of compostable plastic were found in the compost. For example the European standard EN 13432 means the product can compost in a composting facility within 12 weeks, without the addition of artificial additives.

How do you know your product is compostable?

The first step is to look for the certification label from an official authority, like the Biodegradable Products Institute. This organisation certifies that products are able to be composted in commercially run composting facilities. Different countries/continents have different certification labels.
- An alternative is to look for the plastic recycling symbol.

Examples of symbols without certification labels

Yes, tap water in Italy is save to drink. Italy ranks fifth in Europe for tap water quality [1]. All tap water in Italy is chlorinated with the minimum required level being 0.2 mg / liter [2], or in exceptional cases there will be a non potable sign. In this blog we explain more about tap water in Italy.

ITALIAN MINERAL WATER IS SOLD AROUND THE WORLD

Italy is renowned for its many famous mineral waters. However, this has resulted in the rise of water brands. For example San Pellegrino or San Benedetto. Thanks to advertisements, the export of bottled Italian mineral water has increased over the past decade [3]. Main export markets are the United States, Canada, Australia, Germany and France. Pretty crazy to transport water all over the world, right?!

Examples of Pellegrino’s marketing (Source: pellegrino.com)

MINERAL WATER IN ITALY

Italians are used to buy six-packs of 1.5 litre plastic bottles of water from the supermarket. Instead of buying bottled mineral water, you can just fill it for free on the street. Interestingly, Italy is full of ancient water fountains. They can be incredibly beautiful, so bring your water bottle and camera! Some public areas have paid refill stations, that serve filtered tap water for 5 to 10 eurocents.

TAP WATER IN ITALY – BARS & RESTAURANTS

Bars and restaurants most likely serve bottled water. We recommend you to just try and ask tap water. No one usually does and your waiter might not want to bring it to you, but you can ask for it. [4]. Luckily, some restaurants already serve chilled, filtered tap water (for free or for a small fee). Moreover, Refill Italia tries to map all these refill stations, by adding them to the free Refill app. You can also add yours!