Environmental impacts of conventional plastic and bio-based carrier bags

Background, aim, and scope  

The use of bio-based products as carrier bags, packaging materials, and many other applications has been increasingly replacing conventional polymer products. One of the main driving forces of bio-plastic applications is the perceived depletion and scarcity of fossil fuels, especially petroleum. However, despite being introduced as an environmentally friendly alternative to plastics made from crude oil, the environmental benefits of bio-plastics remain debatable. This article serves to investigate whether or not bio-based materials are environmentally friendlier options compared to plastics and attempts to explain the rationale of the results.