Eve Fox of Story of Stuff warns compostable cups are still plastic
Eve Fox, director at the Story of Stuff Project, says the bill's compostable exemption undermines its goals. She argues compostable bioplastics contain toxic additives like PFAS, have heavy climate footprints, and require industrial composting infrastructure that many communities lack.
Hi, thank you so much.
My name is Eve Fox.
I'm the Director of Development and Marketing at the Story of Stuff Project, a nonprofit dedicated to waste reduction and sustainability.
Prior to that, I served on the leadership team at Beyond Plastics, a nonprofit led by Judith Ankh, former U.S.
EPA Region 2 administrator.
And while I applaud the intent of the bill, I agree with Matt, it contains a critical loophole that threatens to undermine its goals.
Exempting compostable single-use cups creates a false solution.
Replacing conventional plastic cups with bioplastic or compostable alternatives fails to protect public health and the environment for four main reasons.
One, they're still plastic and therefore pose serious health risks because even compostable plastic cups are often made entirely of bio-based plastics like PLA or those that look paper are often lined with a hidden plastic film.
Bioplastics are manufactured using the same chemical processing methods as traditional plastics and frequently contain toxic chemical additives, including PFAS, that are used to make them more resistant to water and grease.
In fact, a peer-reviewed April 2025 study in food safety and toxicology revealed that exposure to starch-based microplastics resulted in liver and intestinal lesions, elevated blood sugars.
It messed with lipid metabolism and disrupted gut microbiota, leading the authors to urge strict evaluation of bioplastic safety before use in food packaging.
So-called compostable plastics.
Crop crops also have a heavy climate footprint and use a ton of resources.
They are not carbon neutral.
Growing these crops to produce them takes up a lot of land, water, and fossil fuel inputs and takes farmland away from actual food production.
Furthermore, when compostable packaging, which includes cups, inevitably ends up in a landfill due to a lack of industrial processing,
it breaks down anaerobically and releases methane, which is a greenhouse gas that's roughly 30 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
There is the elephant in the room with all things compostable that are beyond green waste is that there's a lack of industrial composting processing and infrastructure.
Certified compostable plastics don't break down in backyard compost bins or a natural environment.
They require high heat industrial composting facilities that have
precise control over temperature, moisture, and oxygen, which is something that many communities lack the access to.
And even when they do make it into composting systems, there is a widespread facility rejection due to system contamination.
Municipal and commercial composters increasingly refuse to accept compostable foodware, such as cups, because these products introduce toxic chemicals that may include PFAS into their finished compost and they create severe
consumer confusion, which leads to even more widespread contamination from conventional plastics that are mixed into the composting stream.
Major compost.
Listing operators, including those serving the state of Oregon and commercial facilities across California, now explicitly request keeping bioplastics out of the...
Time expired.
Thank you.
Thank you so much, Ms.
Fox.
That was really insightful testimony, and we really appreciate you taking the time to share your expertise with us around compostable cups and the importance of tailoring this legislation correctly.