Crops need to be protected when they’re young, but existing wrappers are usually non-biodegradable plastic that stays in the environment.
Researchers have come up with a degradable polyethylene film that does the job just as well, but doesn’t have the same environmental impact. They’ve teamed up with a plastics producer to put the film into wide use. The film can also be used to protect home-delivered newspapers from rain.
More than 500 films were tested during the research. The different options were analysed for protective properties during the crop’s first four-to-six weeks as well as degradation during the crop cycle to stop them overheating closer to harvest.
Read more at The University of Queensland