Is cheese wax biodegradable?
I was snacking on a Mini Babybel cheese, and it hit me: are my little balls of red wax going to sit in a landfill for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years? You can recycle the little plastic wrapper, and I'm sure the netting it comes in, but what to do about the wax?
I contemplated (for only a second) saving my red wax into a big ball until someone decides it's ok to dispose of ecologically. This would be both hard to keep sanitary and kinda gross.
Thoughts? Is cheese wax ok for the environment?
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3 Comments:
Unless you live in a very progressive area, I doubt the wrapper or netting are being recycled. All plastic is recyclable in theory, but in practice, it's more difficult, and only very specific grades are accepted while the rest is sorted out and landfilled. So even if you put it with the recycleable stuff, it's probably still going to a landfill.
As far as wax being biodegradable in a landfill, almost nothing is. It all pretty much justs sits there, even the stuff that's very degradable. They've pulled newspapers out of landfills that are nearly pristine. Worse yet, the organics in a landfill create methane, which is worse than just having it sit there for eternity. Which is why many areas are adding compostables to the trash pickup services.
The wax is probably compostable. Or, you could start a new hobby, making cheese-wax candles.
dbcurrie at 9:39PM on 09/09/08
You could save it and try to make the world's biggest cheese wax ball. ;-)
beth1 at 1:12AM on 09/10/08
Hey Amanda, Sorry to add to an old post but on my quest to find the big red kitchen timer from Top Chef I noticed that you wanted one too. I found it!
http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com/pelouze/dt24/p7954.aspx
A new season starts tonight! Take care.
Cooper at 9:41PM on 11/12/08