Is compostable better than recyclable?

A majority of 'compostable' (sometimes called 'biodegradable') packaging we're seeing around these days looks like plastic, and is made of something called PLA (which stands for polylactic acid). This is what's called a bioplastic - it contains some degree of natural material from vegetation, like corn. It is, technically, compostable -- when put in a municipal composting facility for 140-180 days, it decomposes. However -- the majority of municipal facilities have a 40-day turnover cycle, which is plenty of time to break down vegetables, meat, and garden refuse, but not bioplastics. This means that when most facilities receive such bioplastics, they sift them out of the mix and divert them to the landfill instead. Contrary to popular belief, if compostable plastics go to the landfill, they are no better than any other garbage (more on this later).

So, if your city does not have municipal composting, you should definitely opt for recyclable plastics, not compostable. If your city does have composting facilities, be sure to check that they explicitly process bioplastics such as PLA (their site will generally say yes or no). For example, the city of Toronto does not handle these materials.

Note that bioplastics are recycling symbol #7; this means ‘Other’, rather than a particular type of plastic (unlike all the other numbers). A very small number of recycling facilities are able to recycle bioplastics - just make sure yours is one before getting experimental and tossing that cup in the recycling bin!

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