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Is Silicone Better than Plastic?

In the past few years silicone has entered the ring as the new saviour to plastic.  Here's why:

BENEFITS

  1. Unlike plastic, there isn't any evidence that it leaches hormone disrupting chemicals into your food and body, regardless of temperature.
  2.  It can be washed and reused for a long time period (years).
  3. It's very durable


CONCERNS

  1. It doesn't biodegrade, so when you're done with it, it never goes away (like plastic).
  2. It's not widely recycled.  Try finding a recycling facility in your region is a bit of a needle the haystack situation.
  3. Even though it technically comes from sand, it's ultimately synthetic and the manufacturing may have some issues.

So what do you think? 

Do you use Silicone bags, cookie sheets, microwave lids? 

Do you think we should sell silicone products until we have a better solution?

Do you have a better solution?  

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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Comments


  • I see no up side to trading one non biodegradable option for another. I’d speculate that there is significant research going into methods to reduce negatives associated with plastic, whereas likely very little for the silicon alternative. I would not purchase anything silicon based as a plastic alternative.

    Ben on
  • I like your mission that in the end, it needs to buodegrade. That’s why I shop with you. Keep on that line. I’m so excited to see where innovation will come. In the meantime… Others are making silicone products, but you do you best.

    Christy on
  • Definitely avoid using silicone that contains D4 and D5 siloxans if you do decide to use it.

    Daphne on
  • From what I know, due to the labor-intensive processing of silicone, it is processed for the most part in China — which has a problem with lack of regulation on environmental standards. This is a reason to avoid silicone products as they don’t agree with your mission.

    Marianna on
  • Personally, I wouldn’t be interested because I can find alternatives for food storage e.g. glass. Also, if someone is truly concerned about the environment they should stop consuming meat. And I don’t think there’s enough reliable research to say definitively that silicone doesn’t break down / become chemically unstable at extreme temperatures so I still avoid putting any plastic including silicone in the microwave or boiling etc. The only silicone I currently use is a menstrual cup because it is much better than the alternative of disposable pads & tampons. The next cup I buy I wanted to try TPE because thermoplastic elastomer is more recyclable than silicone, but my current cup still has years to its lifespan and maybe by then there will be a better non-plastic alternative.

    Daphne on


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