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Below you'll find Big Picture Farm's open-source guide to sustainable packaging suppliers, with a focus on suppliers that cater to small and medium-sized producers. This directory grew out of our own endeavor to transform our entire packaging line to one that is free of virgin plastic and, moreover, is 100% zero-waste (either home compostable or curbside recyclable), thanks to a grant from the Dairy Business Innovation Center. We highlight the products and vendors we currently use as well as list as many alternative options as we could find in each category along the way. We consider this an evolving guide, and we will continue to update it as we discover additional suppliers-- new technologies are materializing in this field every day. (Please reach out to us with any additional suppliers you think we may have missed.)
As you find suppliers you like, check their websites and reach out to them directly with any inquiries. We do our best to keep this up-to-date, but if any info is out-of-date, don’t hesitate to let us know: bigpicturefarm@gmail.com
Our top-choice! Fellow Vermont maker of beautiful wood shavings that are made from Vermont-harvested Aspen trees and are 100% home compostable. Order directly from them off their website as little as 2.5 cubic feet at a time for $50 plus shipping or a pallet of 100 cubic feet for $350 plus freight.
They specialize in corn starch foam, made from US-grown corn. This biodegradable and compostable material can be custom-fit to any shipping need, dissolving in water or composting easily at home. Must order a minimum of 1 pallet at a time.
A unique, paper void fill option that's ideal for protecting heavy items in shipping. Ships on a pallet of flat paper sheets but requires a separate expander machine; the cost is that it's less convenient to use BUT the payoff is that it requires 1/25th the space of pre-expanded materials when it comes to storage space. Made from certified sustainable substrates or post-industrial waste.
Home compostable alternative to plastic film air pillows. Made with recycled paper with a wafer-thin compostable sealing layer inside. Requires a $1500 machine to fill them--so there's an upfront cost. But works well for light to very light goods. Easy to purchase in small quantities.
The Flexi-Hex® is an innovative, protective packaging sleeve made from 100% recycled paper that helps protect fragile products in transit. In other words, Flexi-Hex is a superior alternative for unsustainable bubble wrap, air filled plastic and poorly designed packaging that creates excess waste. Can purchase small amounts through EcoEnclose.
Similar to the standard shipping peanuts of yore; but these are made from starch and so are compostable. $25 per 14 cubic foot bag and available through W.B. Mason.
The white tissue paper liner and outer layer of white or brown expandable honeycomb paper are made from certified, sustainably sourced virgin paper. Artfully mold GreenWrap around your products to provide a beautiful presentation while taking up less room than traditional plastic bubbles.
Seems like it's only available to high volume/bigger companies at this time, but this is a clever concept. Ecovative Design LLC created a new compostable packaging material by growing mycelium together with agricultural matter. Mushroom® Packaging is 100% home and marine compostable at the end of use.