Woburn, Mass.: At a Massachusetts lab, pebble-sized pellets are transformed into forks and films that won't leave persistent microplastics in the environment.These are bioplastic pellets. CJ Biomaterials ferments sugar to make plant-based polymers that microbes will consume. These alternatives to traditional plastics made of fossil fuels are seen by some as one of many solutions needed to confront global plastic pollution.At the company's Woburn research facility, lab technicians recently poured pellets into a molding machine to make forks. The test forks were thin enough for home composting, though too bendy for stabbing a steak. Other batches have been rigid, similar to a typical plastic fork. The technicians melted pellets to roll out flexible films for food packaging, like a bag for baby carrots. The film was quite strong but not stretchy like cling wrap.They are figuring out how their biopolymers can make products with attributes similar to conventional plastics, but that can go in a composting bin instead of a trash can. Forks and films are breaking down in the lab's compost bin. Straws that were added are long gone. A recently tossed-in knife showed pitting on the surface as bacteria colonised it, starting to consume the material.Plastics have never really fundamentally been disrupted. Now, interest in bioplastic is growing because of concern over microplastics. It’s the new "wild card” in this market, said the company’s marketing director Leah Ford."I’ve been doing this for a long time and the compostability has always been a really strong driver. But with the greater understanding of microplastics, I think, that’s going to change how people think about materials,” she said.Traditional plastics last for decades or even centuries as they fragment into harmful microplastics and even smaller nanoplastics. Microplastics have been found in the ocean and the air, in our food and water, and in a wide range of body tissues. The Trump administration, while rolling back many environmental regulations, says it will address contamination from microplastics.Bioplastics are biobased, meaning they are made completely or partially from a renewable resource, commonly corn or sugar cane; or they are biodegradable, meaning that they break down completely via a natural process.Compostable straws and a fork, which were made from plastic made from plants, are displayed at CJ Biomaterials, Monday, Aug. 3, 2026, in Woburn, Mass. Picture credit: APThey can also be both, like the polymers made by CJ Biomaterials. It’s a leader in manufacturing polyhydroxyalkanoates, or PHAs, as a polymer that is marine and soil biodegradable.CJ Biomaterials is trying to replace conventional plastics that are single use or can’t be recycled when contaminated with food scraps. Food waste decomposing in landfills emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas that warms the planet. A container made of pellets from CJ Biomaterials with food scraps could be sent to a composter, unlike a traditional plastic container.The Woburn lab's shelves display the company’s successes: compostable cutlery; straws; coated cups for hot beverages and frozen food pouches used in the United States; sushi trays; ramen containers; and reusable paper towels. Lab employees dine with compostable cutlery, drink from compostable cups and make coffee with compostable pods. These products last on shelves because they are not exposed to microorganisms in water or soil.CJ Biomaterials feeds sugar to microbes that convert it to PHA for energy. The company collects the PHA and turns it into granules. Pellets of this are then sold to other companies that can melt them down and mold them into products. These same bacteria will consume PHA in a compost pile, breaking it down within six months, Ford said.CJ Biomaterials is part of the $32 billion South Korean conglomerate CJ Group. It has been producing PHA at a manufacturing facility in Pasuruan, Indonesia, since 2022.World Wildlife Fund sees biobased plastics as part of a suite of solutions that are needed. They can reduce the world’s dependency on fossil fuels that cause climate change, said Erin Simon, a WWF vice president. She said the world needs to reduce the amount of plastic being produced, then make the rest sustainably.Nations are trying to confront the spiraling plastic pollution crisis by crafting a landmark treaty. They have yet to agree on any effective methods to stop plastic pollution, though negotiators plan to meet again early next year.U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley has held congressional hearings on plastic pollution, including one exploring alternatives for single-use plastics. He also views bioplastics as one option with potential, among many that are needed. But, he said, more information is needed about how they break down and impact ecosystems and health.Environmental groups, including the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, argue that bioplastics maintain the single-use paradigm and distract from real solutions. Some say farmland shouldn't be used to grow crops for plastic instead of food.Globally, biobased plastics represent roughly 0.5% of the more than 400 million metric tons (440 million tons) of plastics produced annually, according to the industry group European Bioplastics. Production is projected to double by 2030 due to rising demand and the emergence of more advanced applications and products, it said.China, Sweden and the United States are major exporters of natural polymers.Large sports stadiums and major restaurant chains such as McDonald's are experimenting with biobased packaging and utensils. The Tous les Jours bakery, part of the CJ Group, uses PHA straws.There are obstacles to widespread adoption. Bioplastics typically cost more than conventional plastics. Major cities have municipal composting programs, but they are limited elsewhere. A growing number of composting facilities accept compostable bioplastic products, though some refuse out of concern about degraded soil quality. And because bioplastics and conventional plastics often look and feel identical, they can be mixed up and cause problems for composters.Thirty minutes from the Woburn research lab, Black Earth Compost accepts certified compostable materials. On Monday, compostable cups, cutlery and bin liners were mixed in with a delivery of food scraps and lobster shells.Accepting bioplastics increases the amount of food scraps they receive because people can put an entire compostable container into an organics bin, instead of scraping food out.The 5 Gyres Institute tested 22 items made of traditional plastic, biobased and biodegradable materials and other alternatives, such as paper and bamboo. Straws, utensils, thin film and bottles were put in different environments across Florida, California and Maine. By the end of the 64-week study, many of the biodegradable materials were gone, or were pitted and cracked as they fragmented. Traditional fossil fuel-based plastics persisted.Marcus Eriksen, the institute’s co-founder and a researcher, said the synthetic plastic spoon was almost the same as when he first put it in the ocean, but little was left of the spoons made from biodegradable materials.The California-based nonprofit released the results in 2023. It's currently repeating the study to evaluate end-of-life scenarios for the new generation of packaging.Eriksen thinks people should use biodegradable options, especially for packaging. Otherwise, he said, "we’re going to flood the entire biosphere with micro- and nanoplastics.”

New York: Encouraging customers to mend worn clothes instead of buying new ones might seem like a self-defeating sales strategy. But in-store repairs and sewing workshops are becoming essential retail services for clothing brands as they try to appeal to young consumers who want to save money and the planet.While luxury fashion houses and select specialty retailers like Patagonia and L.L. Bean have offered product repairs for decades, the concept has caught on. Jeans giant Levi Strauss & Co., casual wear chain Uniqlo and budget retailer Primark are a few of the apparel companies hoping to win over Generation Z shoppers with a needle and thread.Levi's created a handstitching course for high school students after determining that many members of Gen Z lacked the sewing skills to match their interest in thrift store shopping and sustainability. Employees spend 90 minutes instructing teenagers on four tasks: sewing on a button, hemming, patching a hole and fixing a tear.The Wear Longer program, which the San Francisco-based company is expanding across the U.S., builds on the repair and customization services Levi's offers at hundreds of stores worldwide."We think it’s important to empower the people who buy our clothes with the skill sets to maintain them, to get them to that second life,” Paul Dillinger, Levi's head of global design innovation, said.Detroit resident Chloe Halprin, 25, is the kind of consumer retailers hope to attract with a "fix it, don’t ditch it” message.In high school, Halprin shopped at inexpensive, trendy stores. Fixing a big rip felt beyond her limited sewing ability. If she damaged a top or skirt from Forever 21, "I might just throw it away."These days, Halprin buys most of her clothes secondhand. She recently learned to hem with a sewing machine and hopes to tackle projects like turning a skirt into a shirt."I try to be conscientious of my carbon footprint,” Halprin, a nonprofit grant writer, said. "I really don’t like waste. I’m trying to save money as well.”Levi’s employees teach students during a sewing workshop at a Levi’s retail store in downtown San Francisco, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. Picture credit: APThe evolution of mending from an economic necessity and traditional craft to a method for cultivating customers didn't happen overnight. The fashion industry as a whole has come under intensifying pressure to reduce its contributions to environmental pollution and climate change.Textile waste - which includes manufacturing remnants, unwanted clothes and linens, and unsold products - is one of the industry's most pressing challenges. Each year, the world generates fabric waste at a rate equivalent to a garbage truck's worth getting dumped or incinerated every second, the United Nations Environment Program estimates.Researchers broadly agree that repairing and reselling clothes can reduce a garment’s environmental impact, especially if it delays or replaces a new purchase. But many caution the practices remain too limited to offset continued growth in clothing production and consumption.Clothing production roughly doubled between 2000 and 2015, while the average number of wearings per garment declined by about 36%, according to figures compiled by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. The sustainability nonprofit estimated that less than 1% of discarded clothing material got recycled into new apparel.Enter Generation Z, the cohort born between 1997 and 2012. It's the generation that grew up with fast fashion and e-commerce, then had school years and young adulthoods shaped by the coronavirus pandemic and post-pandemic inflation.Whether due to limited budgets or a rejection of materialism, Gen Z has helped the preowned clothing market grow much faster than retail apparel sales in the U.S., independent market intelligence firm GlobalData estimated in a report with resale platform ThredUp.For companies that make new clothes, mending programs and classes address "some deeper consumer needs and consumer behaviors at the moment," GlobalData retail analyst Neil Saunders said."It puts a halo on the brand,” he said.The hands-on response from mass-market retailers, especially fast-fashion chains like Primark, Zara and H&M, has generated interest as well as skepticism.Zara, which has its headquarters in Spain, launched a digital platform in 2022 for customers to resell their used pieces and to request basic alterations and repairs. The program is available in 17 of the nearly 100 countries where the trend-driven retailer operates.Ireland-based Primark has focused more on customer education. The value-focused retailer hosts free "Love It For Longer” events where customers are taught skills like replacing zippers and buttons."Learning how to repair and care for clothing is probably one of the most simplest but absolutely totally effective ways that we can reduce waste and also extend the lifetime of whatever we buy,” Vicki Swain, Primark’s product longevity & partnership lead, said.The company has held the workshops - more than 730 altogether - in nine of the 17 countries where Primark has stores, including the U.S. Primark also tested in-store repairs at three U.K. locations this year.Swain argues that affordable clothes can be just as durable and repair-worthy as more expensive ones. Half the items Primark sells annually are basics like socks, underwear, T-shirts, and jeans, she said."There is nothing throw away about our products,” Swain said.Uniqlo, which focuses on timeless wardrobe staples, offers a range of aftercare services, including repairs, decorative sashiko mending, embroidery and creative restyling.Available in 75 of the Japanese mass-market retailer’s roughly 2,500 stores worldwide, the services are promoted as a national extension of the product life cycle. Providing them also strengthens Uniqlo’s connection with customers, said Jean-Emmanuel Shein, director of global corporate responsibility at Uniqlo USA.Kate Fletcher, a professor of sustainability, design and fashion systems at Manchester Metropolitan University in England, said she thinks the repair initiatives of popular retailers are well-meaning, but she doubts they will have much environmental impact."The fashion sector’s primary source of impact is due to the overproduction of pieces and growing volumes of garments created,” Fletcher said. "Repairing a garment in store happens in addition to these growing production volumes, not instead of them.”The question facing the fashion industry is whether repairs can evolve from niche service to commercially viable.Sweden's H&M Group, which has more than 4,000 stores in over 80 countries, has been unusually candid about one of the biggest obstacles: the economics. The company has argued that repair and resale are desirable goals, but manufacturing new garments costs businesses less than keeping existing ones in use.H&M experimented with mending and redesign studios in several European flagship stores over the past decade. The company also is majority owner of a secondhand clothing platform called Sellpy.In May, H&M joined Primark, ThredUp and dozens of other fashion and textile businesses in signing a statement that urged governments in North America and the European Union to adopt tax policies that would make repairing and reselling clothes profitable.Making mending work in retail is challenging because it's labor intensive and must be priced low enough to entice customers, Saunders, of GlobalData, said. Signals from consumers also are mixed, he said."I think younger shoppers still shop fast fashion because even though it goes against some of their principles, it is one of the most accessible parts of the market," Saunders said. "But what they’re doing as well, though, is they’re buying into alternative channels like resale. And they’re having things repaired.”