In 2013, the European Union will review its support for the use of oxo-biodegradable plastics such as the ones used in the Spanish region of Murcia to cover lettuce, broccoli, watermelon and melon crops, and it is expected that only biodegradable plastics will be supported, as the former leave residues in the soil.
This is the prediction of Murcia's Food and Agriculture Research and Development Institute (Imida), which encourages Murcia's growers to use these more environmentally-friendly plastics in the approximately 10,000 hectares where the oxo-biodegradable ones are still used, especially in the valley of Guadentin, the fields of Cartagena and the North East region.
The region of Navarra's canning industry, which is already enforcing new rules that establish penalties for the use of oxo-biodegradable plastics, buys Murcia's production during the winter, when the temperatures in Navarra are too low for agriculture.
Source: Laverdad