Hi Wren,

Thank you for contacting Frito-Lay to share your comments about the 100% compostable SunChips package.

As you know, composting generates heat as a by-product. The temperature and rate of degradation will vary on how you maintain your compost pile. The hotter the temperature of your compost, the faster the materials in your pile will decompose. The SunChips compostable bag will break down in about 14 weeks if the compost temperature is maintained above 130F. If your compost pile does not get that hot, the package will still break down, but it will take longer.

It's important to maintain a good mix of "green" and "brown" materials in your compost bin. Try to add about one part "green" for every three parts "brown." The reasoning behind this is to balance the carbon to nitrogen ratio to encourage microbial activity.

Greens: fruit & veggie scraps, grass, garden clippings/flowers, green weeds
Browns: dry leaves, small twigs, straw/hay, sawdust, paper, soil/mulch/woodchips, coffee (include the filter), SunChips compostable bag (cut up)

Thicker, more fibrous items will compost faster if they are cut into smaller pieces before placing in the bin. The moisture level in your compost pile is another important variable for successful composting. Depending on the season and type of bin, you may need to water the compost several times a week.

Our home compost research found that the bigger compost bins (21 cu. ft and up) equals more efficient composting. Having a larger mass of organic materials will enable the pile to insulate itself and lose less heat from the surface, therefore increasing the rate of degradation.

Thank you again for your comments. We will continue to post composting information on www.sunchips.com.


Best regards,

Dear Sun Chips,

I write to you regarding your recently unveiled compostable Sun Chips bag. While I commend you on your pursuit of environmentally sustainable business practices, I feel, based on my experience, you've oversold/misrepresented the compostability therefore the environmental qualities of this product.

I'm a skeptic by nature and happen to have a keen interest in the general trend towards green. I like to investigate claims, think things through for myself, and provide my feedback, both good and bad, when a company's practices catch my interest.

My first experience with "compostable" packaging was a plastic soda glass from Pizzeria Pagliacci in Seattle, WA. The cup was so strong that I doubted it's claims of compostability. Instead of just spreading my doubt and negativity, I decided to test the claim. One year in my compost bin and not the slightest change. While not surprised, I was disappointed. I chalked the whole thing up to a subtly in language and assumed that they meant "industrially compostable".

It was this distinction of "industrial compost" vs. "home compost" that got me excited about your "home compostable" packaging. But again, being a skeptic, I decided to put it to the test. Well, after 16 weeks (2 more than you say it takes), there is negligible composting that has happened to the bag. While all the other food scraps, etc. surrounding the bag in the bin have already turned to soil, there is a pristine albeit dirty Sun Chips bag just sitting there.

If the bag was only 1/2 decomposed, I could deal. Sure we don't have the _best_ compost around. There isn't steam coming off and we don't turn it on a weekly basis. So if the bag decomposed slower in our bin, I could see that. Even thought everything else composts just fine, I'd still give your claim of "home-compostable" the benefit of the doubt.

Being that there was no change of the package, I'm forced to say that I consider this claim a complete untruth therefore greenwashing, a sin pretty high up in my value system. So while the product itself might be a step in the right direction, the over-claims about it leave a rather bad taste in my mouth about your company. (Luckily you have some of the tastiest chips around, so the bad taste is displaced quickly.) I hope that you continue to work on the development of this product or even spread the use of the current product (because industrially compostable packaging is better than totally non-compostable packaging). But I ask that you reassess the claims about the product.

Thanks,
Wren

P.S. I've shared my experiment, with photos, on my blog. http://blogduwren.com/?sp=Sun%20Chips%20Experiment%20Results