The logistics sector remains heavily dependent on polyethylene films for pallet covers, ULD protection, and stretch wrapping, yet mounting regulatory and customer pressure is forcing operators to re-evaluate material choices. Against this backdrop, BioNatur Plastics is positioning its modified polyethylene films as a pragmatic alternative rather than a radical replacement. The company’s proposition centres on two measurable levers: source reduction through downgauging and accelerated biodegradation in anaerobic landfill conditions.
Unlike compostable or oxo-degradable alternatives, BioNatur’s material remains 99 percent polyethylene, incorporating a proprietary organic additive that enhances tensile strength, tear resistance, and puncture resistance. This mechanical uplift enables films to be produced between 10 percent and 30 percent thinner without sacrificing load stability. For cargo operators, that translates directly into lower resin consumption and, by extension, a smaller environmental footprint per shipment.
“BioNatur plastics can help reduce the environmental footprint in logistics in a couple of key ways. But first, it’s important to note that there is no ‘perfect’ solution. Every material will have some environmental impact. Any time humans take something and make it into something else, there is an impact. At BioNatur, we are careful to convey that we are not perfect — but we are better,” said Chris Paladino, President & CEO of BioNatur Plastics.
“When you cover your pallets or ULDs in BioNatur plastic sheeting, we are able to make the films anywhere from 10 percent to 30 percent thinner than your current plastic. Our proprietary organic additive has a fascinating side effect from our initial goal — it makes the plastic stronger. Tensile strength, tear resistance, and puncture resistance all rise, so we are able to get you the same performance from a much thinner film. If you use thinner film, you use less plastic,” Paladino added.
Beyond source reduction, the second pillar of the company’s strategy addresses end-of-life realities. In the US, a substantial proportion of industrial film ultimately enters landfill. BioNatur’s additive is engineered to enable anaerobic bacteria to break long polymer chains back into digestible hydrocarbons, reducing biodegradation timelines from centuries to a fraction of that span under oxygen-free conditions.
“The second way we are able to make a difference is by creating a film that will truly biodegrade in an anaerobic environment. When the film is buried in an anaerobic environment, like most landfills, the bacteria that live in this oxygen-free zone will digest our additive and then go on to digest the plastic itself. Our additive allows the bacteria to break the polymer chains back down into small hydrocarbons, which it is then able to digest. Traditional plastic will biodegrade in 500 to 1,000 years,” Paladino explained.
Standards, recycling compatibility and cost parity
Validation under recognised standards is central to BioNatur’s technical case. The company relies on ASTM D5511 testing, equivalent to ISO 15985, to measure anaerobic biodegradation. Reported results show up to 99.7 percent biodegradation in 1,697 days under laboratory conditions, supported by total petroleum hydrocarbon testing indicating no residual plastics in the test system.
In operational environments, degradation rates vary depending on moisture, temperature, and organic load, making precise timelines difficult to guarantee. However, the company argues that compatibility with existing recycling streams is equally critical. Unlike 
compostable and oxo-degradable films, BioNatur’s product can be recycled within conventional polyethylene streams and requires no separate handling, an important consideration for high-throughput cargo hubs.
“The test we use to determine biodegradability under anaerobic conditions is ASTM D5511. ASTM D5511 testing has shown up to 99.7 percent biodegradation in 1,697 days under anaerobic conditions. We then conducted total petroleum hydrocarbon testing of the sample inoculum to see if there were any hydrocarbons remaining, and this test showed that no plastics were left in the system after the conclusion of the ASTM D5511 test. It’s a nice validation of the ASTM results,” Paladino noted.
“BioNatur plastic is designed to work in the most common waste streams for plastic. First, and most importantly, it is 100 percent recyclable in the normal plastic waste stream where collected. BioNatur plastic requires no special separating, sorting, or collecting. It can be included right along with your regular plastics for collection,” Paladino said.
Cost competitiveness remains a decisive factor in logistics procurement. In the US market, BioNatur states that its films are priced at parity with, or below, conventional plastics, while remaining significantly cheaper than compostable or oxo-degradable options. In Europe, additional logistics costs associated with additive supply may result in marginal price premiums, though these are often offset by downgauging and resin reduction.
Operational optimisation can further enhance the economic case. Stronger films may allow operators to reduce wrap counts on pallets, delivering double-digit percentage reductions in material use. Combined with thinner pallet and ULD covers and the option to incorporate up to 50 percent post-industrial or post-consumer recycled resin, the cumulative impact extends beyond landfill diversion to upstream emissions and fuel savings, particularly in airfreight applications where every kilogram carried affects burn rates.
“In the US, BioNatur plastic is the same or even lower cost than traditional plastic and significantly less than the cost of compostable or ‘oxo’ degradable plastics. With plastic sheeting for pallets and ULDs, we find we are typically cost neutral. We are able to do this thanks to the significant reduction in thickness of the pallet and ULD covers, along with slight reductions in stretch film. The reduction in resin used more than offsets the cost of the additive,” Paladino stated.
“If, for example, you are currently having to wrap a pallet with 15 wraps to get the load stability you need, but you can use the same spec of stretch film from BioNatur but use 13 or even 11 wraps to achieve the same stability thanks to the increase in strength, you can actually be saving money overall. Two fewer wraps is a 13 percent reduction in the use of film on a pallet. Combine this with the cost savings from being able to use significantly thinner pallet and ULD covers, and the savings can really begin to add up,” Paladino added.
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Author: Edward Hardy
