Summer is the perfect time to enjoy a picnic. But how green is your picnic if you’re bringing virgin plastic cutlery, paper plates, and paper napkins with you? As many places implement ‘carry in, carry out’ policies, we have to think about the effect our disposables are having on the municipal waste stream and how we can better minimize our impact.

Branch, which offers sustainable products for daily life, offers a series of biodegradable plates, bowls and napkins. These are made entirely of bagasse , which is a sugarcane fiber, a byproduct of the refining process.  It is a renewable material, but is often burned as a waste product instead of reused. Branch sells bowls, plates, trays, and platters made of this material that are unbleached and FDA approved.

Now all you need is your cutlery, right? Well, Branch offers a sustainable solution for that too. They sell forks, knives and spoons made of potato starch and vegetable oil which are also completely biodegradable. Their website advertises that the cutlery will decompose in just 180 days in a composting facility. A plastic fork (depending on the kind of plastic) can take decades to decompose. Tens, or even hundreds of years versus 180 days?

Lastly, Branch carries a line of cold cups made from a polymer that is derived from corn and other renewable resources. These are said to break down within 90 – 120 days in a commercial composting facility. Not only are these decomposing faster, but they are reducing our dependency on oil and focusing on products that we can grow in the US.

In addition to these biodegradable options, they also sell 100% recycled paper napkins. If you have to have disposable napkins, these may be a good choice but we can also suggest bringing your own cloth napkins from home, as these leave less of a waste trail.

Branch carries some great products for a more sustainable lifestyle. The only caveat for those trying to buy sustainable and local, is that many of their products are made in China or Thailand. If we can manufacture compostable tableware in the US instead of abroad, we can begin to close the loop in production, which would stimulate the local economy as well as be an environmental gain.

Though there are many options out there for biodegradable and compostable tableware, I like the selection at Branch because they clearly outline what their products are made of and why that is a more sustainable choice than its traditional counterpart. They also offer smaller quantities for the every day user, instead of only selling huge cases (better suited for retail). It’s important that it’s not only the food service industry that has access and incentive to buy these products, but that they are marketed for the individual as well.

We need to think about the purpose of the products we use and how the materials suit the need. Many products generally outlast the purpose they are built for, which contributes to greater waste. Instead, we can use biodegradable options that can be thrown into the compost pile or completely recycled when they’ve served their original purpose.