Download as PDF - Download PDF

Green Dot offers toy companies a safer more sustainable alternative to petroleum based soft plastic PDF

Cottonwood Falls, Kansas: Green Dot is introducing the market’s first rubber-like compostable plastic to the toy industry at the ABC Kids Expo to be held in Louisville Kentucky on October 14-17, 2012.

Scented Scoops ice cream toyToy industry leaders are seeking safer, more sustainable materials for their products. Responding to growing concerns from parents, these companies are seeking alternatives to the petroleum-based soft plastic used in everything from baby dolls to bath toys.

Green Dot’s new compostable plastic is ideal for safe sustainable soft plastic toys. It’s made from non-toxic plant-based material, free from phthalates, bisphenol A, lead and cadmium. The bioplastic has been tested and verified by NSF International to meet child product safety standards in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

The material is durable, strong and pliable, perfect for toys that are made to last. However, when their useful life is over, toys made with Green Dot’s bioplastic can be returned to nature. Green Dot’s bioplastic has been independently tested and verified to meet composting standards in the U.S. (ASTM D6400) and E.U. (EN 13432). The material may also be disposed of in a home composting environment where it will gently biodegrade in a matter of months to return to plant nourishing soil.

The characteristics of the bioplastic provide excellent performance in fabrication. It has a lower melt temperature compared to petroleum-based elastomers, reducing energy cost and shortening cycle times. It has superior compatibility with other thermoplastic elastomers and better printability. The plant-based material is superior for scenting as well.

BeginAgain Toys from Fort Collins Colorado has developed an imaginative ice cream playset using Green Dot’s new compostable elastomeric bioplastic. ‘Scented Scoops’ is an ice cream party playset that smells good enough to eat. Each beechwood cone can be topped with one or more of the six, deliciously scented two-inch ‘scoops’ made from Green Dot’s bioplastic (two vanilla, two chocolate and two strawberry). “This corn starch bio-resin is the most innovative eco-material we’ve ever had our hands on – it’s the new rubber,” says Chris Clemmer, president of BeginAgain. “It’s safe, soft and can be molded like rubber. It’s even dishwasher safe, yet transforms into compost at the end of its useful life. We also love that Green Dot’s bio-resins are made in the U.S.A.”

Green Dot serves both the plastics industry and style-conscious consumers who want to protect the Earth, not pollute it with enduring waste. The company creates compostable bio-resin and stylish sustainable products made in the U.S.A. Green Dot aspires to improve the environment in which we live, by building a more sustainable world through renewable bio-based resins and promoting their use through invention, creation and research so everyone can contribute to a more sustainable world.