Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by 4g on Tuesday June 25, 2024 @02:55PM
(#40792141)
There are a few problems with beeswax, given the very low supply and high demand the price of real beeswax is an order of magnitude greater than paraffin wax, so there is a very large incentive to at the very least mix in some paraffin. Also much of the beehive foundation sheets are made of adulterated wax.
But even if you managed to find some real beeswax, given that bees are collecting pollen from many fields that have been treated with pesticide the harmful substances tend to accumulate in the beeswax and the concentration increases every year if not filtered correctly, and given how hard it is to filter it from fatty substance you might end up with some in the wax.
Of course they are way more expensive than buying a roll of plastic bags, but I bought them one by one and made plastic bags basically obsolete (other than for freezing bread, as that does not fit in my freezer containers) in my house hold over the course of a year or so. And I expect them, based on experience over the last year, to hold for at least another 2 years without needing to reapply the wax layer or buying new ones.