Top: Image courtesy BPI

BPI is holding its 2024 Summit, Aligning the Compostable Products Value Chain Through Collaboration, Sept. 10-12, in Berkeley, California. On Monday, Sept. 9, there is a pre-Summit tour of the Napa Recycling & Composting Facility in Napa, California, a food scraps and yard trimmings operation that accepts compostable packaging. On Sept. 10, Summit attendees will tour the Bioproducts Research Facility in Albany (CA), a U.S. Department of Agriculture facility that conducts “cutting-edge” research in bioplastics, biofuels, and other renewable manufacturing materials. The Summit brings together professionals involved with product and material development, zero waste programs, collection and hauling, composting operations, and policy development with a goal of collaborating to build a successful system for food scraps diversion that includes compostable products and packaging, according to BPI. The agenda includes composting facility operators that do and do not accept compostable packaging, enabling transparent and constructive conversations about the benefits and the challenges. Other sessions analyze a variety of relevant policies and regulations, highlight new technologies and innovations, and report on lab and field testing trials. “The 2024 BPI Summit connects leaders in the circular bioeconomy to work together to take transformative actions through compostable products, food waste solutions, and policy frameworks,” notes Rhodes Yepsen, BPI’s Executive Director.