Comments on: SpudWare Cutlery made from potatoes

By: Margarite Epperson

Margarite Epperson — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 20:00:50 +0000

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By: shmeccashmevens

shmeccashmevens — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:20:38 +0000

hello i am doing an interview for my global studies class on companies promoting global change. i would like to ask you a few questions about your company and what you are doing to help the world on a global scale.

1. how is your company different from other companies that are doing similar things? how is your company more effective/environmentally friendly?

2. what kind of materials do you make your product out of, and how good is it for the environment?

3. how does your product have a positive global effect on the world?

4. what kind of big organizations use your product and how much has it caught on?

By: MooPig

MooPig — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:37:00 +0000

Survive in The Woods With A Plastic Fork And Some Lint
“Well, here you are lost in the bush again. How did you get there? Beats me. Too bad you didn’t bring a survival kit or some gear. After a quick inventory, you have managed to find a plastic fork and a ball of lint from inside your pockets. You’re screwed, but it could be worse. You could have nothing at all.
…
You build a shelter and a fire…. Alright, so you now have shelter and a fire. But what about your plastic fork? Surely there is some use for it, right? Of course there is. Hopefully you’ve caught a few episodes of Oz, because this is going to require some prison ingenuity.”Grab your plastic fork and head over to your new fire pit. Look around and find yourself a small, dry stick that you can use as a “match”.
Light that bad boy on fire. Got it? OK. Now begin gently heating the handle of the fork. It’s important to heat the fork very gently because the plastic will start to burn if it gets too hot. When the plastic begins to soften, gently form the handle into a blade shape using your thumb and index finger. Take your time and do a good job. Once you have the fork formed into the desired blade shape, allow the plastic to cool for a while.
Now the final step. Find yourself a big rock. Not just any rock will do. It needs to be the smoothest rock that you can find. Once you’ve picked your rock, you can begin the process of sharpening your plastic fork. Just sharpen it as you would any other knife. Once you’re done, you’ll have the next best thing to a real knife. Hey, if it works in prison, it can work in the woods too. Now go shank some wildlife.” (shoutwire, nd)
–Heck, I don’t have a plastic fork, I only have my Spudware — WWGMD? [...what would grandma do...] Well I could distill it into Vodka! Yay, I’m saved!

By: seagat

seagat — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 19:27:19 +0000

Hey Goldfish, while there are many imitators, there is only one SpudWare! The cutlery at Whole Foods is not SpudWare if it gets mushy in heat.
And composting SpudWare does need green waste. Like any other brown material (compost has to have equal parts of “green” (fresh nitrogen waste) and “brown” (woody carbon source), it needs to be shredded. With moisture, enzymatic action and the heat that ensues, SpudWare is being composted at many sites across the country.

By: luckybird

luckybird — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 16:56:13 +0000

spudware is a great idea, however its unpleasant to use because it smells.

By: Bat Mitzvah Decompression « The Life and Times of Organic Mama

Bat Mitzvah Decompression « The Life and Times of Organic Mama — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 15:45:15 +0000

[...] the last-minute things like plattering had to be done. ‘Ka had brought cutlery from CA -SPUDWARE, to be precise- made from potato starch and soy oil, while I had bought Earthshell, disposable, [...]

By: Ali

Ali — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 16:07:53 +0000

*make

By: Ali

Ali — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 16:06:50 +0000

Okay! Calm down!

1. Is what way is by any measure similar to conventional plastic cutlery?
2. Cutlery replaced by compostable alternatives isn’t styrofoam – it’s mostly PP. The price for a ton of PP would get you 1/3 of a ton of this material
3. Potato is rarely GM – and this stuff comes from China who have no GM crop.
4. PLA Cutlery can come with heat resistance (www.compostablepackaging.co.uk)
5. It’s agreed generally that this will compost within a year in a home compost heap
6. So what if it ends up in landfill? No oil used to burn it
7. If you want takeaways to give away stainless steel cutlery to people – know that that’s a hell of a workload to replace. Not to mention added shipping weight adding to fuel consumption

It’s all good in the compostable packaging hood.

Ali

By: David

David — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 14:58:24 +0000

I really think we need to be wary of using items that are made from food sources. Sure, these items have a lower impact on the earth, but how many more people will go without basic starches because we are now making forks, spoons, sporks and fpoons with them?

By: industrial designs for sale - ROGUEXCHANGE

industrial designs for sale - ROGUEXCHANGE — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 21:32:28 +0000

[...] Inhabitat read more about Bioplastic here Posted in Eco, [...]

By: Charlotte

Charlotte — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 13:52:54 +0000

[…] spudware […]

By: take-out trash :: craftastic

take-out trash :: craftastic — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 06:17:53 +0000

[...] spudware [...]

By: Technomanai.net » Blog Archive » Bulviniai stalo įrankiai

Technomanai.net » Blog Archive » Bulviniai stalo įrankiai — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 01:56:50 +0000

[...] [inhabitat.com] Pažymėk: Šios nuorodos veda į socialinių žymų puslapius, kuriuose skaitytojai gali dalintis ir atrasti įdomius www puslapius Tagai: bulvė, ekologija, įrankiai, maistas, peilis, soja, spudware, šakutė, šaukštas Panašūs įrašai: Spurgų kepimo automatas, Helouvyniško maisto rinkinukas [Foto], Nagus į maistą!, Ozono skylė traukiasi, Pakrovėjas su saulės baterijomis, 1 arklio galios autobusiukas, Dažai, generuojantys elektrą, Ekologiškas duomenų centras, Žaliausias automobilis – Smart Roadster, Dviračiai – žoliapjovės [...]

By: compost compost compost « articul design’s Weblog

compost compost compost « articul design’s Weblog — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 10:04:34 +0000

[...] http://www.inhabitat.com/2007/10/13/spudware-cutlery-made-from-potatoes/ Filed under: Uncategorized [...]

By: Jóvenes Por la Ecología de Asturias » Una cubertería hecha de patatas!!??

Jóvenes Por la Ecología de Asturias » Una cubertería hecha de patatas!!?? — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 13:32:54 +0000

[...] Visto en Inhabitat [...]

By: Max Christian Hansen

Max Christian Hansen — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 22:45:14 +0000

I notice two themes in this thread: “Does it really biodegrade?” and “Is it sturdy?”. Note that if both these are ideals, they probably conflict. Folks in the business of designing bioresins have to do a balancing act. They want their products to be shelf-stable and heat- and mouth-resistant, but also compostable.

To make this possible at all, the standards for compostability have to call for a very bioactive process. And the “official” standards (ASTM D6400 and its Euro equivalent) do just that. To be certified compostable, a bio-based product needs to break down in the conditions common to municipal and commercial composting operations. These include carefully controlled moisture and oxygen, and pretty high temps, usually over 150F. Few of us get those conditions in our piles at home. (When I do, it’s through very generous use of urine-rich horse manure.)

Spudware(R) can stand up to boiling water because the latter hasn’t the bioactivity of the compost heap. Heat and bioactivity are both required.

Notice the (R) after Spudware. The name is a registered trademark of Excellent Packaging and Supply, and if your food service is using biodegradable cutlery that isn’t Spudware, it may not be the same stuff at all. If it droops in the soup, it certainly isn’t Spudware. More likely, it’s PLA (corn plastic), which is pretty cool stuff, but decidedly not heat-resistant.

Exactly the same stuff as Spudware does exist under different names. The cutlery sold as “Vegware” by the company of the same name in the UK is the same. (The owner of that biz plans to register “Vegware” as his own trade name for the product.)

[Disclosure: I'm currently doing work for Excellent Packaging and Supply. Great company.]

By: Cubiertos biodegradables

Cubiertos biodegradables — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 20:30:21 +0000

[...] Vía | Inhabitat [...]

By: Killusion » Blog Archive » Alright, I’ll force you to change

Killusion » Blog Archive » Alright, I’ll force you to change — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 01:20:23 +0000

[...] systemic level. Instead of telling people to stop buying petrol-based plastics, let’s create patato-based plastics instead. Whatever, just make them from anything other than the poisonous chemicals we use [...]

By: Russell

Russell — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 09:17:20 +0000

Great news!

My spud spoon is finally sprouting some mold! I’m pretty sure that it started growing on the food residue and whatever fell into the jar of water. The mold seems to be working its way into the blade of the spoon, which is starting to puff up with water. I guess they do biodegrade after all.

I have another one stuck into the compost box of coffee grounds.

As for usability, I think the spoons are great. I have been using a few of them for months on a weekly basis. The tines of the forks tend to get twisted up.

The biggest usability issue is that their pasta-like feel and taste practically *begs* you to gnaw them into uselessness.

aplagueofboil : I’m not suggesting boiling as a means of disposal. I just want to see if the claims of “biodegradable” are credible or not. Besides, who says I can’t use a solar oven?

By: StockKevin

StockKevin — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 06:18:28 +0000

Is this edible? Id like to eat it.