What makes a product biobased? Could you answer this question? If not, you are not alone. According to Genencor Household Sustainability Index, over 60 per cent of surveyed American and Canadian consumers have not even heard of the term ‘biobased’.

Then it should come as no surprise that over a third of consumers state they have doubts that such products benefit the environment at all. Of biobased products, ethanol fuel and laundry or dishwasher detergents are most readily perceived as ‘green’.

When asked what made ‘green’ products better for the environment, the top answer was ‘few or no toxic materials/ingredients’. Other popular answers were ‘breaks down naturally when disposed of’, ‘generates less pollution from manufacture or use’ and ‘can be recycled or reused’.

But despite this relative unfamiliarity with the term ‘biobased’, a majority reports recent purchases of green products, with youth appearing to be most positive about green and biobased products.

© Jorn van Dooren | www.bitsofscience.org

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