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Nature Fresh Farms releases 100 per cent home-compostable cucumber wrap

Nature Fresh Farms has released a new, 100 per cent home-compostable wrap for their Long English Cucumbers.

An alternative to traditional polyethylene plastic, this film is an environmentally friendly compostable wrap that breaks down in a household compost without leaving behind microplastics. The compostable film will prolong the shelf life of the product; however, it will do so without adding to long term landfill waste.

Made from a starch-based PLA that is derived from plant-based resources including non-GMO corn starch, the wrap breaking down naturally into CO2 and water.

Each cucumber wrap contains 0.00436 lbs of plastic; this translates to the equivalent of 23-million plastic straws saved from landfill for every 5 million cucumbers wrapped in the compostable film. Cucumbers are packed in shrink wrap to significantly extend their life by minimizing evaporation. Nature Fresh Farms says this packaging solution is a first in the North American market and can maintain the shelf life of the cucumber, while meeting the demands of more sustainable packaging alternatives.

“The launch of the compostable wrap is a demonstration of our commitment to our consumers wants of reducing plastic usage. We are excited to be first to market with this initiative in North American and are hopeful this will start a trend with the industry while we continue to lead in sustainable packaging solutions,” says Matt Quiring, Director of Sales at Nature Fresh Farms.

 In addition, the wrap includes a PLU pre-printed on the film in compostable ink. This feature allows the entire wrap to be thrown in with backyard compost or in landfills without harming the environment. PLU stickers are commonly made of vinyl and plastic. This new wrap eliminates the need for the additional application.

 “After two years of research & development and lot of trial & error, it’s so exciting to see this film launch in market. We are confident in this product’s ability to make a true difference (in reducing harmful plastic waste),” says Luci Faas, Product Development Specialist.

 Nature Fresh Farms is one of the largest independent, vertically integrated greenhouse vegetable farms in North America. As a year-round grower with farms in Leamington ON, Delta OH and Mexico, Nature Fresh Farms supplies retailers throughout North America.