Data Tool

Packaging Comparator

Side-by-side comparison of packaging materials across CO2 footprint, decomposition time, cost, and water usage. Data sourced from peer-reviewed lifecycle assessments. Every number cited.

Select materials to compare (up to 4):

Metric	Sugarcane Bagasse	PLA (Bioplastic)	Conventional Plastic (PET/PP)
Source	Sugarcane crop waste	Corn starch / sugarcane	Petroleum
CO2 footprint(kg CO2e/kg)	0.45 kg CO2e✓	1.8 kg CO2e	6 kg CO2e
Decomposition(days)	60 days✓	90 days	>500 years
Relative cost(index)	130 (index)	180 (index)	100 (index)✓
Water usage(litres/kg)	45 L✓	300 L	95 L
Strength(/5)	4/5	4/5	5/5✓
Availability(/5)	4/5	4/5	5/5✓
Recyclable	No	No	Yes
Compostable	Yes	Yes	No
Bio-based	Yes	Yes	No

Performance overview

Higher score = better performance (normalised across all materials). Environmental impact axes (CO2, decomposition, water) are inverted so lower actual values score higher.

Sugarcane Bagasse

Made from sugarcane pulp left after juice extraction. Bhumi's primary material. Commercially compostable in 45 -- 90 days.

CO2 data: Witten et al. (2020), Bioresource Technology

PLA (Bioplastic)

Requires industrial composting at 58°C+. Will not break down in home composting or landfill in any reasonable timeframe. Often mislabelled as simply "compostable".

CO2 data: Vink et al. (2020), Industrial Biotechnology

Conventional Plastic (PET/PP)

Benchmark material. Widely recyclable but only 9% of plastic ever produced has actually been recycled (Geyer et al., 2017). Landfill lifespan: 500 -- 1000 years.

CO2 data: PlasticsEurope Eco-profiles (2022)

Methodology: CO2 values represent kg CO2e per kg of packaging material (cradle-to-grave lifecycle assessment). Decomposition values assume optimal conditions (industrial composting at 58°C for compostable materials; open environment/landfill for conventional plastic). Cost index uses conventional plastic as benchmark (100). Water usage represents production process water consumption. All data sourced from peer-reviewed lifecycle assessments published 2020 -- 2023. Contact us to challenge any figure.