Students received a special surprise when they got their lunches on Oct. 14, and no, it wasn’t an extra strip of bacon along with breakfast for lunch, but rather, new lunch trays.
Other districts have already made the change to biodegradable lunch trays. After students demonstrated against the use of styrofoam trays at Thomas Starr King Middle School by hanging them up in school in 2012, LAUSD banned the trays and introduced compostable paper trays.
These trays are part of Dispoz-O’s biodegradable product line, Enviroware. The trays are made with Dispoz-O’s green2technology and renewable resources, such as wood fibers, and are intended to completely degrade after being buried or discarded in a landfill.
The process involves using normal plastic and including additives which are designed to break down the tray when micro-organisms found in landfills are present. These micro-organisms break down the plastic into organic compounds. Enviroware products are all dye-free.
However, the Enviroware trays cost 40 percent more than the previous lunch trays. New plates cost $26.35 per case, while the old styrofoam plates cost $15.85. There are 500 trays per case and TCUSD orders 135 cases each month to meet the entire district’s needs.
“I think the new plates are a good change,” Environmental Club Public Relations Officer Junior Meishan Liang said. “It’s a good way for the high school to give back to the environment.”