Some supermarkets and retailers are currently reviewing ways of limiting use of non-degradable bags.

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The degradable wafer released chemo drugs directly into the brain without affecting other areas of the body.

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You can put them into landfill sites but they're so tightly compacted, even if they're degradable, they don't break down.

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These organ regeneration projects use three-dimensional printers to print out a bio degradable scaffold and then populate it with stem cells.

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Del Monte is currently researching bio-degradable alternatives to the existing plastics used and plans to introduce them as soon as their feasibility is validated.

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Because the bags are not bio-degradable it is a fair bet that some of them pre-date the Republic of Ireland's plastic bags tax, introduced 11 years ago.

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Though it may seem unnatural for gum to not be sticky, widespread use of the degradable stuff could be great news for both your carpet and local governments who spend thousands of dollars cleaning it off sidewalks.

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Crisis says the benefits are there for the companies too, as by participating in the scheme and donating their excess produce, they will save on landfill tax, which is charged for each tonne of degradable waste that they produce.

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